News

Sustainability-focused funds continue to be on the rise in the EU in spite of "growing anti-ESG sentiment", according to a new report from the Maples Group. A review of over 27,000 funds across the two largest fund domiciles in the EU, Ireland and Luxembourg, has revealed how the Sustainable Finance

Sir John Gillen has been reappointed as independent assessor of PSNI recruitment vetting for a further four years. The retired judge, who sat on Northern Ireland's High Court from 1999 and the Court of Appeal from 2014 until his retirement in 2017, will serve for a second term until 30 April 2029.

UK government ministers have shelved plans to allow AI companies to train their models on copyrighted material unless creators actively opted out, following a backlash. The original proposal, floated in a December consultation, would have created a copyright exemption in favour of AI developers, pla

A round-up of human rights stories from around the world. Saudi Arabia executes its 100th prisoner so far this year

A raccoon named "Chewy" was caught by police with a meth pipe in his mouth after a traffic stop in Ohio. Springfield Township Police Department say they pulled over the car after the motorist was identified as having an arrest warrant and a suspended licence.

Around two-thirds of business leaders in Ireland believe AI is improving productivity, a survey carried out by law firm William Fry suggests. The firm's annual AI summit at the Dublin Royal Convention Centre yesterday brought together senior executives, policymakers and legal specialists to hear how

The PSNI has been challenged over a bizarre decision to release a deliberately blurred image of suspects in an attempted murder. Belfast firm Phoenix Law said its client Sean O'Reilly was confused by the force's appeal for assistance in identifying two suspects while releasing CCTV images with their

Northern Ireland personal injury law firm JMK Solicitors has recognised the expertise of five team members by giving them new titles. Marie-Claire Meehan is now director of performance, while Susan Morrison is now costs consultant and Sinead Toal, Ailis McKeown and Wendy McIntosh are now senior asso

New guidelines on the use of AI in public services have been published by the government. The 84-page document has been developed to "actively empower public servants to use AI in the delivery of services", the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform said.

An English High Court judge has referred solicitors and a barrister to their professional regulators after discovering that five non-existent case citations were knowingly submitted to the court in a judicial review. Mr Justice Ritchie said the lawyers involved in Ayinde, R v The London Borough of H

Northern Ireland prosecutors are to appeal a sentence imposed on a man convicted of sexually exploiting and trafficking vulnerable young women. Oliver MacCormack, 71, was sentenced on 10 April 2025 in Belfast Crown Court to seven years' imprisonment for 40 counts relating to nine female victims.

William Fry has appointed three new consultants and four new managing associates.

Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) has been named as the recipient of the 2025 Bar of Ireland Human Rights Award. The charity's chief executive officer, Rachel Morrogh, will collect the award on behalf of DRCC at The Bar of Ireland's human rights conference on Saturday.

A woman who was compared to Darth Vader at work has won nearly £30,000 from an employment tribunal. The NHS blood donation worker had temporarily left a room when her colleagues decided to take a personality quiz which would tell them what Star Wars character they were, the tribunal heard.

So-called "sex-for-rent" arrangements are set to be criminalised under proposed new legislation. The general scheme of the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025 proposes to create two specific criminal offences of offering accommodation in exchange for sex and advertising o