Ms Justice Mary Finlay Geoghegan

Ms Justice Mary Finlay Geoghegan spoke at an event at the Supreme Court in response to tributes marking her retirement in a few weeks.

She said delays in having appeals heard at the Court of Appeal are unacceptable and stem from the fact there are too few judges.

The Chief Justice, Mr Justice Frank Clarke, led tributes to her, noting she graduated in maths from UCD before ultimately being called to the bar in 1980. Her rise, he said, was “meteoric” and she became a senior counsel in 1988.

She was appointed to the High Court in 2002 and was a founding member of the Commercial Court and played a significant role in the new High Court asylum list as well as the Examiner’s list. In 2014 she was appointed to the Court of Appeal and to the Supreme Court in late 2017.

The Chief Justice said that in each of the areas in which she worked, she left a “lasting imprint”.

Attorney General Séamus Woulfe thanked her for her public service, including for her roles as chairwoman of the Referendum Commission for the Children’s Referendum and added his hope she would go on to perform other valuable services in the future.

Ms Justice Geoghegan’s key judgments include a 2012 High Court one dismissing Treasury Holdings over a decision of the National Asset Management Agency’s to call in more than €1 billion of its loans.

She said she had been “so fortunate” in her life and career and would be here without the opportunities given to her by people including her parents, family and colleagues.