Case Reports

Northern Ireland’s High Court has determined that it is in the best interests of a child to be relocated to Poland, where he has family ties and where his mother’s new husband is based. The court noted the emotional impact that refusing the application could have on the mother and, in tu

The High Court has quashed a sentence for burglary on the basis that the trial judge erred by refusing to allow counsel an opportunity to take instructions from their client. The defendant had pleaded guilty to stealing €5,000 from a house in at a hearing in 2021. Delivering judgment in the cas

James Milliken of Carson McDowell reports that we are beginning to see artificial intelligence take on complex tasks such as assisting lawyers with drafting contracts. Artificial intelligence (AI) plays an ever-increasing role in our everyday lives. It is used in Face ID and other image recognition

The Court of Appeal has held that a mandatory disqualification from holding a driving licence due to careless driving only applies if the accused had two previous convictions for careless driving in a three-year period prior to the offence. The decision provides clarity on the issue of mandatory dis

The High Court has ruled that a doctor who was facing suspension from the medical register pending the outcome of disciplinary proceedings may be identified in media reports. The application was made by Mediahuis, who sought to name the doctor who had several serious driving convictions. In an ex te

Northern Ireland’s High Court has struck out an action as being doomed to fail and frivolous where the lay litigant plaintiff was seeking a combined £300 million for alleged failures by his legal representatives and the police to enforce a court order. The court also rejected his claim t

The High Court has refused an application by a former sparring partner and friend of Conor McGregor seeking to restrain Mr McGregor from describing him as “a rat”. The plaintiff claimed that the insult meant that he was an informer and a person who betrays another. The application was br

As another year draws to a close, lawyers across Ireland will be settling down for the Christmas break. December is always a busy period as both clients and the courts are keen to finalise matters before every sits down to turkey, selection boxes and (for those inclined) festive tipples for three we

Northern Ireland's High Court has determined that a personal injury settlement which a man received two years before his bankruptcy did not form part of the bankruptcy estate. The court found that the sum satisfied a statutory exception, and should be excluded because it represented provisions neces

The High Court has released Enoch Burke from prison, stating that this was “one of the very rare cases where the coercive imprisonment should stop”. It was held that Mr Burke was motivated to remain in prison, having made a number of illogical decisions during the course of the litigatio

The High Court has restored a company to the Register of Companies despite objections from the director that the applicant had no locus standi to bring the application. The applicant was the assignee of loans which had transferred after the strike off from the Register and the director claimed that

The High Court has dismissed two claims for personal injuries involving a minor accident on the basis that the plaintiffs gave "false and inconsistent" evidence in the case. A central feature of the case related to one of the plaintiffs being referred to medical consultants by her solicitor, which t

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has upheld a 19-year prison sentence for offences committed by a father against his 12-day-old son. The court accepted that this was a stiff sentence, but found it reasonable given the nature of the acts in question, and given the appellant’s lack of re

The High Court has awarded €89,000 to a man who received a tear to his rotator cuff and psychiatric damage in a road traffic accident. In so ruling, the court applied the principles contained in the Personal Injuries Guidelines for compensation for multiple injuries. Delivering judgment in the

The Court of Appeal has ruled that the son of a defendant to possession proceedings may not represent his father in an appeal despite the fact that the son represented his father on numerous occasions in the High Court. The son had appeared 28 times in procedural lists on behalf of the defendant and