Mr Justice Stephens and Mr Justice Deeny were sworn into office as Lord Justices of Appeal at the Royal Courts of Justice at the opening of the new legal year.

A spokesperson for the Lord Chief Justice’s office confirmed to Irish Legal News that Mr Justice Treacy, whose appointment was also approved in February, will be sworn in later this year.

Sir Ben Stephens was educated at Manchester University. He was called to the Bar of Northern Ireland in 1977, to the Bar of England and Wales in July 1978 and to the Bar of Ireland in 1996. He took Silk in 1996, and was appointed as a High Court Judge in 2007.

Sir Donnell Deeny was educated at Trinity College Dublin and Queen’s University Belfast. He was called to the Bar in 1974 and took Silk in March 1989. He is a former High Sheriff of Belfast and was appointed as a High Court Judge in 2004.

Sir Seamus Treacy was educated at Queen’s University Belfast. He was called to the Bar of Northern Ireland in 1979 and took silk in 1999. He was called to the Bar of Ireland in September 1990 and to the Inner Bar of Ireland in 2000. He practised as a barrister from 1980, concentrating mainly on human rights, criminal law, judicial review and public inquiries. He was appointed as a High Court Judge in 2007.