News

Rev Dr Lesley Carroll has been named as the new prisoner ombudsman for Northern Ireland. Dr Carroll, a Presbyterian minister who is currently deputy chief commissioner at the Equality Commission and also works at Victim Support NI, will take up office for a three-year term from 1 March 2019.

The House of Lords is set to debate proposals to legalise same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland later today. Conservative peer Lord Hayward has confirmed he plans to table an amendment to the Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration Etc.) Bill during committee stage today.

Lawyers are the "healthiest profession" in Ireland because they prefer salads for lunch, according to Deliveroo. The delivery service said workers at legal firms subscribed to its corporate catering service were the most interested in salads.

A prisoner facing a three-month jail sentence for making an improvised tattoo gun interrupted a judge yesterday to point out the maximum possible sentence was 30 days. James Kidd, 25, admitted having the banned item in Perth Prison in December 2017, which he had made from a spoon, a guitar string, a

A man who was made a Ward of Court four days before he was due to be released from the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) has lost his appeal to the Supreme Court. Counsel for the man had argued that because he satisfied the statutory criteria for admission to the CMH under the Mental Health Act 2001, th

Belfast firm Mills Selig has announced the appointment of Kirsten Magee as a senior associate in its dispute resolution and litigation team.

International legal business DWF, with offices in Belfast and Dublin, has announced plans for an initial public offering and has submitted necessary documents for approval to the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Recently-incorporated DWF Group Limited plans to undertake a reorganisation of it

A senior Irish lawyer has sounded the alarm over the impact of a no-deal Brexit on cross-border cases and enforcement of court judges, the Irish Independent reports. Seán Barton, partner at McCann FitzGerald, said cases requiring international co-operation, such as cross-border fraud cases or

Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan has dismissed calls for the right not to testify against one's spouse to be extended to unmarried couples, including civil partners and cohabitating couples. The Court of Appeal ruled last month unmarried partners are not amenable to the non-compellability provision

The Director of Public Prosecutions has launched proceedings for contempt against the Irish Independent following the collapse of a rape trial late last year. The proceedings against publisher Independent News & Media, Irish Independent editor Fionnán Sheehan and journalist Nicola Anderso

The Government's strategy to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is set to be reviewed to examine its success. Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan today announced the mid-term review of the Second National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence 2016-2021, which was launch

A dissident republican political party has launched legal action against social media giant Facebook over allegations of "censorship". Saoradh, which was set up in 2016 with the support of prominent republican critics of the Northern Ireland peace process, claims that its members "have been banned f

The UK government has announced plans to legislate for new civil orders aimed at tackling knife crime among young people. Amendments to the Offensive Weapons Bill 2017-19, currently before the House of Lords, will give courts in England and Wales the power to impose "knife crime prevention orders" o

JMK Solicitors handled more personal injury cases in Northern Ireland than any other law firm for a fifth consecutive year. Figures obtained from the compensation recovery unit at the Department of Communities reveal that the Belfast- and Newry-based firm handled 1,544 cases registered in 2018, more

Ronan Daly Jermyn has advised an Irish wine importer on its acquisition by a multinational wholesaler. Classic Drinks, founded in 2004, has been acquired by food service distributed Pallas Food, part of global distribution company Sysco Corporation.