Road Traffic Law

Asylum seekers are now able to apply for driving licenses and learner permits in Ireland following a High Court ruling last month. In his judgment, Mr Justice Mark Heslin said international protection applicants should be considered "lawfully resident" in the State for the purposes of the Road Traff

Careless driving will become a fixed penalty notice offence under plans to reduce the number of minor motoring offences becoming before the Northern Ireland courts. A consultation paper published this week proposes that a fixed penalty of £100 of three penalty points should be imposed for mino

Two asylum seekers who were refused permission to exchange their foreign driving licences for Irish ones have succeeded in a High Court challenge. The legal challenge, led by solicitor Stephen Kirwan of KOD Lyons, centred on whether the asylum seekers could prove they are "normally resident" in Irel

The High Court has determined that a motor insurer must provide cover for a man who was badly injured when the lifting mechanism of a lorry failed and dropped a large bin on him. The dispute came before the court as a special case pursuant to Order 34 RSC, in circumstances where two insurers could n

All drink driving offenders will have the opportunity to reduce their disqualification period by up to 25 per cent by completing a rehabilitation training course under a new law coming into force today. The Road Traffic (Amendment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 has been commenced with effect from Mond

Personal injury and road traffic accident specialist firm JMK Solicitors has partnered with New Driver to offer school pupils the chance to win a new car.

Ireland's human rights watchdog has been granted permission to act as amicus curiae in a case concerning the National Driving Licence Service’s (NDLS) refusal to permit asylum seekers to exchange their foreign driving licences for Irish ones. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has

Justice Minister Naomi Long will next week meet with the family of an 18-year-old student killed by a drunk driver to discuss the initial findings of a major sentencing review. The family of Enda Dolan, who was killed in October 2014, have called for tougher sentences for drunk drivers ever since Da

Plans to introduce graduated speeding penalties have been scrapped by the new government. Former Transport Minister Shane Ross had secured Cabinet approval in 2019 for a new system which would have imposed sanctions on drivers according to the extent to which they exceed the speed limit.

A barrister has discovered a technical error in road traffic legislation which may render arrests in certain cases of drug driving unlawful. David Staunton, who is currently preparing a second edition of his book Drunken Driving, found that the Road Traffic Act 2016 includes a reference to section 1

Legislation exempting private vehicles of historic interest from annual MOT testing has come into effect. The change applies to private vehicles constructed or first registered more than 40 years ago and aligns Northern Ireland legislation with that in Great Britain.

Asylum seekers' right to work is being undermined because they are denied access to driving licenses, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) has said. The rights watchdog made the remarks following a Dublin Circuit Court ruling which confirmed that a single mother living in a rural D

A review of legislation allowing for roads to be closed for special events such as street parties or sporting events has begun. Councils, sporting bodies and other organisations have raised concerns about the operation of the Roads (Miscellaneous Provision) Act (Northern Ireland) 2010.

The lack of progress on establishing a specialist Traffic Court in Northern Ireland has been criticised by the criminal justice watchdog. Jacqui Durkin, chief inspector of criminal justice, said she was disappointed that the court "has not at least been piloted".

Nearly three dozen road traffic cases have been struck out following a High Court ruling on the constitutionality of the Road Traffic Acts. Judge Patrick Durcan at Ennis District Court struck out 34 cases, 21 of which were over unpaid speeding fines.