News

A round-up of human rights stories from around the world. Imprisoned Chinese Rights Lawyer’s Family Hears From Him for First Time in 4 Years

The heiress to a famous German biscuit company has come under fire for saying the company "did nothing wrong" by using slave labour in the Nazi era. Verena Bahlsen, 25, is an entrepreneur and the great-granddaughter of Hermann Bahlsen, creator of the Choco-Leibniz biscuits produced by the Bahlsen co

A man who was given a five-year custodial sentence for possession of a firearm has been granted a declaration that s.27A(8) of the Firearms Act 1964, which imposes a mandatory minimum sentence of five years, is repugnant to the Constitution. Concluding that the section should be struck down as uncon

Caytons Law has announced the appointment of Ronan Cosgrove as a partner and head of the firm's Dublin office. Mr Cosgrove joins the firm, which has offices in Dublin and London, from another multinational firm's offices in the Irish capital, bringing with him a wealth of experience advising on a wi

The Chief Justice, Mr Justice Frank Clarke, has encouraged solicitors to sign up for the new e-filing system for appeals to the Supreme Court. The system was given a "soft launch" in February and more than a dozen solicitors have registered since then, but no appeals have been filed via the new syst

Belfast-based Millar McCall Wylie has announced it has retained the legal services contract for Northern Ireland Screen following a competitive tender process, marking a total of 18 years working with the national screen agency. The firm, which has two offices in Belfast, has served as legal advisor

A website advertising a fake law firm has been pulled from the web after it was exposed by the Law Society of Ireland. In a notice published on its website, the Law Society said it did not authorise or regulate a practice called "O'Leary & Zemen".

The Central Bank of Ireland has launched an investigation into the legality of commercial banks adding legal fees to the mortgages of customers in arrears, even before court cases have concluded. More than 60,000 mortgage holders have been hit with legal fees running to tens of thousands of euro, th

New measures to protect British soldiers and veterans from prosecution for their actions abroad should eventually be extended to Northern Ireland, Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt has said. The proposals, announced yesterday, will see British soldiers protected from investigation over their actions

An employer which dismissed a man because of his dyspraxia has been ordered to pay €15,000 in compensation, the equivalent of 18 months' pay. The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) ruled against Sky Handling Partner Ltd in the case brought by former employee Stephen Dunne with support from th

Belfast solicitor John Finucane, son of murdered human rights lawyer Pat Finucane, has been nominated by Sinn Féin to be the next Lord Mayor of Belfast. Mr Finucane, a partner at Finucane Toner Solicitors, was elected to Belfast City Council as a Sinn Féin candidate in the Castle Distr

Associate Ciarán Ahern and solicitor Patrick O'Neill in the employment, pensions and incentives team at A&L Goodbody examine recent changes to the Irish immigration regime. There have been a number of recent developments in Ireland which further facilitate Irish employers in recruiting sk

Lucy Clarke, associate in litigation and dispute resolution at Carson McDowell, writes on the launch of the new Commercial Hub in the Northern Ireland courts. On 29th April 2019 the new Commercial Practice Direction (No 1 of 2019) came into operation. It applies to ALL litigated commercial actions w

The General Court of the EU has confirmed that registration of the mark ‘NEYMAR’ by a third party is invalid. In December 2012, Mr Carlos Moreira, residing in Guimarães (Portugal), filed an application with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) for registration o

Irish firms McCann FitzGerald and Matheson won recognition at the inaugural Benchmark Europe Awards last night. McCann FitzGerald triumphed in three categories, including Irish Law Firm of the Year, while Matheson partner Sharon Daly was named Irish Lawyer of the Year.