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A round-up of deals involving Irish law firms. Submit your deals to newsdesk@irishlegal.com. Arthur Cox Listing Services has acted as listing agent for Firmenich Productions Participations SAS on its inaugural €1.5 billion Eurobond.

Félim Ó Maolmhána examines, in response to an earlier Irish Legal News article, how many lawyers have served in the Oireachtas. I was struck by Mr Benjamin Bestgen’s piece, “The Ship of Fools” (8 April 2020) featured in this publication. Mr Bestgen makes some v

An emergency hardship fund has been established for barristers to support junior lawyers in financial distress as many do not qualify for the UK government's coronavirus support scheme. The Barristers’ Benevolent Association has created the fund and the four Inns of Court are making packages t

Poland's most senior judge and one of the strongest critics of the country's controversial justice reforms has firmly criticised the government as her term in office comes to a close. Malgorzata Gersdorf, who became the first woman to hold the position of first president of the Supreme Court on her

The death penalty can be handed down for the theft or destruction of manhole covers, Chinese judges have been told. A statement from the country's top legal and judicial bodies reminds judges that suspects can be charged with "endangering transportation" or "endangering public safety", which have a

The next government should requisition land for housing and overhaul the examinership process to help businesses survive the coronavirus crisis, the Master of the High Court, Edmund Honohan SC, has said. In an interview with the Irish Independent, the quasi-judicial office-holder set out a series of

A new facility allowing solicitors to top up their suspense accounts through card payments will be piloted from today, the Land Registry has announced. In a note to practitioners, Christine Farrell, the registrar of titles, said testing on the enhanced LandWeb Direct system has been completed.

A furniture business has secured a High Court injunction preventing its eviction after it was unable to pay its rent as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Design Features Ltd, represented by Dublin law firm Sherwin O'Riordan, argued that the threatened eviction was not permissible under the lease

Ireland's human rights watchdog has called for "close parliamentary oversight" of emergency legislation introduced in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission issued a statement this morning following a meeting on Friday to consider the rights implications

Judges have been urged to abandon the phrase "beyond all reasonable doubt" as it apparently confuses juries. In new guidance for the judiciary, they have been advised to tell jurors they should be “satisfied so that they are sure” a defendant is guilty before convicting.

Three alleged IRA members who were convicted of training Colombian rebels in bomb-making have been granted an amnesty. The "Colombia Three" fled to Ireland shortly before they were sentenced to 17 years' imprisonment for training FARC guerillas.

Arthur Cox has been recognised as Ireland's top law firm at the 2020 International Financial Law Review (IFLR) Europe Awards. The firm also advised on the Structured Finance and Securitisation Deal of the Year and was recognised for its work on the Stenn trade receivables securitisation deal.

A&L Goodbody has won two awards from the China Business Law Journal in recognition of its high-profile work in 2019. The firm claimed the Aviation Firm of the Year and Deal of the Year awards from the CBLJ, which recognises landmark China-related deals every year with a focus on overall signific

The right to work from home could be enshrined in employment law in Germany later this year, according to reports. Hubertus Heil, the federal minister for labour and social affairs, told Bild am Sonntag that he would bring forward legislation in autumn.

Owners of realistic sex dolls have been reminded to dispose of their erstwhile companions properly following a series of mistaken reports of dead bodies. Police in Germany responded to a report of a dead body in a Bavarian village last weekend only to find a remarkably convincing sex doll, The Times