The Law Society of Scotland is drawing up plans to allow first-year trainee criminal lawyers to appear in court because there are too few entrants to the criminal legal aid sector, The Times reports. There are currently between 25 and 30 trainees at criminal legal aid firms, in addition to those at
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Over 680,000 public services cards (PSCs) were issued last year, bringing the total issued to over 3.03 million, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection has revealed. The controversial PSC scheme, which has come under fire from privacy campaigners and data protection lawyers, has
The founder of an organisation helping lay litigants fight repossession orders has lost his own case in the High Court, the Sunday Business Post reports. The court granted Pepper Finance a repossession order for the Kildare home of Byron Jenkins and Adrienne Jenkins.
Police have launched a criminal investigation into the demolition of an historic Dundee mill. The derelict Halley's Mill, built in 1836, was demolished by Craigie Estates in May out of safety concerns.
A woman’s claim for damages trespass and personal injuries, and violation of constitutional rights arising out of the Gardaí’s forcible entry into her home without a warrant in August 2012, has been remitted to the High Court for an assessment of damages. Allowing the woman’
Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan has told the Irish Examiner he backs a review of contempt of court laws but is restricted by a "very full-on legislative programme". The justice minister said he would also support a review of libel laws as he reflected on the use of social media during the Jobstown
The UK Supreme Court will hand down its judgment this week on Belfast woman Siobhan McLaughlin's challenge to the rules governing the payment of a Widowed Parent's Allowance. The case was heard by Supreme Court justices in May during its historic first-ever sitting in Belfast.
There are still 138 outstanding lawsuits involving the Irish Banking Resolution Corporation (IBRC), formerly known as Anglo Irish Bank, despite it being wound down in 2013, the Irish Examiner reports. Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe told TDs that the IBRC is currently defending 111 cases and is the
Three major human rights groups have sent a joint letter to The Irish Times calling for an overhaul of electoral legislation that "violates civil society freedoms and democratic norms". The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), Amnesty International and Transparency Ireland said the Electoral Ac
Darryl Broderick, partner and head of litigation and dispute resolution at Ronan Daly Jermyn, examines the impact in Ireland of Cliff Richard's recent court win in a major privacy lawsuit against the UK's public broadcaster. Earlier this month, the BBC announced that it would not be appealing the Hi
The Data Protection Commissioner has launched an investigation into whether Facebook is breaching the GDPR by failing to fulfil requests to hand over information it collects about users' web browsing. The social media giant collects information about other websites that Facebook users access using a
Amnesty International has restated its support for abortion law reform in Northern Ireland after new plans to loosen abortion pill rules in England were announced just weeks ahead of a judicial review brought by a Belfast woman who illegally accessed abortion pills online. Grainne Teggart, Amnesty's
Scotland's prosecution body, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), has been given additional in-year budget of £3.6 million to fund the recruitment of up to 140 permanent staff, including 60 lawyers. The funding boost has been agreed by the Scottish government
The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has announced plans to open a "prison-themed" café staffed by ex-prisoners, The Irish Times reports. The café is set to be opened in Dublin city centre as part of the Department of Justice's social enterprise policy.
The government of Ukraine has lodged a new application with the European Court of Human Rights against Russia. The case concerns the detention and prosecution of Ukrainian nationals on various criminal charges. There are now four Ukraine v Russia inter-state applications pending before the cour