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A man who perpetrated a massive psychic mass-mailing fraud scheme which stole more than $175 million from over 1.3 million victims has been jailed for 10 years. Over two decades, Patrice Runner, 57, sent millions of letters purporting to be individualised, personal communications from well-known so-

Virtually no family lawyers support government proposals to reallocate most divorce, judicial separation, and co-habitation proceedings to the District Court, a new survey suggests. The Family Lawyers Association surveyed its 286 solicitor and barrister members ahead of a summit on the Family Courts

Children's rights campaigners have called for stricter regulation of social media algorithms to protect children from harmful online content. The Children's Rights Alliance wants Coimisiún na Meán and the Irish government to take urgent action in the wake of an RTÉ Prime Time in

Northern Ireland parents should no longer be able to avail of the "reasonable punishment" defence to justify physically punishing a child, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) has said. A new report published by the charity, which represents children's doctors in the UK, calls f

A range of human rights experts including Professor Colin Harvey are set to address a Belfast conference organised by Sinn Féin's Commission on the Future of Ireland next month. The 'Rights in a New Ireland' conference will be chaired by Ailbhe Smyth, who played a key role in the marriage equ

McCann FitzGerald has secured three awards at the Managing IP EMEA Awards 2024 in London, including Practitioner of the Year for partner Fiona O’Beirne. Ms O'Beirne was recognised for her continued excellent work in the field of patent litigation and other intellectual property disputes. Her p

A referendum on Ireland's participation in the Unified Patent Court (UPC) will no longer take place in June, the government has said. Ministers previously announced in January that a referendum paving the way for Ireland to ratify the UPC agreement would take place alongside the European and local e

Draft legislation providing for a package of ongoing supports to survivors of abuse in residential institutions is to be published. The text of the Supports for Survivors of Residential Institutional Abuse Bill, which provides for supports in areas including health, advocacy and education, was appro

The Law Reform Commission has proposed a new statutory and regulatory framework for adult safeguarding in a 1,000-page report published today. Following extensive research and analysis of existing domestic law and policy and a comprehensive review of adult safeguarding legislative frameworks in othe

The UK's lack of legislation protecting striking workers from disciplinary sanctions short of dismissal is in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, the UK Supreme Court has unanimously ruled. Trade union UNISON brought the case on behalf of care worker Fiona Mercer, who was suspended by

A rare posthumous presidential pardon is to be granted to two men convicted and executed in relation to an 1882 murder following research by Dr Niamh Howlin. Sylvester Poff and James Barrett were convicted of the murder of Thomas Browne in October 1882 and executed in January 1883.

Fatal motorcycle accidents have skyrocketed in a US state since it repealed a mandatory helmet law. Since Missouri scrapped a law requiring motorcyclists to wear a helmet in 2020, fatalities have increased by 47 per cent, Kansas City Public Radio reports.

Ms Justice Úna Ní Raifeartaigh has been elected to serve as the next Irish judge on the European Court of Human Rights. The Court of Appeal judge was the overwhelming choice of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), with only a handful of votes cast yesterday for r

Justice minister Helen McEntee has secured Cabinet approval to amend legislation in order to increase sentences for a number of knife-related crimes. Crediting her colleague James Browne for his work with the Anti-Social Behaviour Forum and its subgroups, which resulted in these proposals, Ms McEnte

The wrong couple were divorced after solicitors made a computer error. "Mr and Mrs Williams" were married for 21 years until separating in 2023. But they had not yet sought a divorce.