Chief Justice Frank Clarke

The student law society has unveiled a programme of public events to mark the occasion, beginning with a talk by Mr Justice Clarke on Monday 1 March, 5pm.

Dr Tom Courtney, a partner at Arthur Cox and adjunct professor of law at NUIG, will speak on the conflicting interests of company directors on Tuesday 2 March, 5pm.

A&L Goodbody lawyers Brian O’Malley, Bríd Nic Suibhne, Eugenée Mulhern and Eoghan Kenny will speak about their firm’s changes over the past century and its preparations for the next 100 years on Wednesday 5 March, 5pm.

Court reporter Frank Greaney will talk about media and the law, considering the interactions of law and media in public broadcasting, on Tuesday 4 March, 5pm.

A virtual law ball for current students will take place on Friday 5 March, 7-9pm, with students urged to “dust off your finest attire and join LawSoc for a virtual celebration evening with guest comedian Tom Mahoney from ‘Damo & Ivor’”.

The programme will conclude with a celebration of International Women’s Day on Monday 8 March, 5pm, with Michele O’Boyle, president of the Law Society of Ireland; Maura McNally SC, chair of the Bar Council; and Anne Marie McMahon, deputy commissioner of An Garda Síochána.

Niamh Lynch, auditor of NUIG Law Society, said: “We are delighted to launching our LawSoc100 centenary celebrations. We hope that the celebrations will allow us an opportunity to reflect on the last 100 years of the Law Society, which has grown to become one of the largest societies in NUI Galway, and indeed one of the oldest in the country.

“We also hope that the celebration events will show the adaptability, perseverance and tenacity of the Society in reaching this significant milestone – traits which we aspire to in the present times.”

Vice-auditor Patrick McWalter said: “At the very core of LawSoc’s character is the desire for community, debate, engagement, and kinship. It is for this reason that we are more determined than ever before to ensure that we mark this momentous occasion- given that our community is now physically further apart than ever before.

“The Law Ball is the highlight of every Law Student’s calendar in NUIG, and for that reason we will be hosting our online Law Ball – let it never be said that a hidden virus stopped us from marking our centenary in style.

“We, as a Society, are honoured to be joined by some of the brightest legal minds in the country for our celebrations, and we know that our members – past and present – will find these events both stimulating and engaging.”

NUI Galway president Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh added: “The Society encapsulates what NUI Galway is about – here for our students, for civic society, in terms of social justice, human rights and how we maintain good society more generally. The Law Society encapsulates values of respect for each other, excellence, openness and sustainability.

“The 100th Anniversary is significant in that the Society has sustained the student traditions over the years – a place I remember as one of oratory and welcome.

“The Law Society starts a new century now, and in doing so we recognise the importance of law in society, especially for those most vulnerable in society who very often need the protection of law.”