Judicial Conduct

A senior judge has been disciplined after sending a letter "expressing his love" to a young colleague. Mr Justice Marcus Smith, 57, a former president of the Competition Appeal Tribunal, “passed a handwritten letter” to a woman and referred to his "feelings for her", a ruling from the Ju

Judge Gerard O'Brien has resigned as a judge of the Circuit Court in the wake of his conviction on charges of attempted rape and sexual assault. His resignation comes after the Attorney General was asked to advise the government and Oireachtas on their options following his conviction, as no sitting

The Attorney General has been asked to advise the government of its options following the conviction of a Circuit Court judge for attempted rape and sexual assault. Judge Gerard O'Brien was convicted in late December of sexually abusing six men between 1991 and 1997 while working as a Dublin schoolt

A senior judge in England and Wales has been disciplined for bullying.

An Australian judge has been ordered to personally pay damages to a man he imprisoned for contempt following "a parody of a court hearing". The Federal Court of Australia yesterday awarded over $300,000 AUD (around €180,000 or £150,000) to the man, identified by the pseudonym "Mr Stradfor

Judges in England and Wales are being urged to reflect on the risk of perceived bias before agreeing to speak at barristers' chambers or law firms. The suggestion comes as part of the revised guidelines on judicial conduct issued this week.

Restrictions on the disclosure of evidence heard in-camera are creating an inadvertent barrier to complaints about the conduct of judges in family law cases, the Judicial Council has said.

The Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland has said she "provided advice and guidance" to a Tyrone judge after his comments while sentencing a man for sexual assault "caused legitimate concern". Judge Brian Sherrard KC, sitting in Dungannon Crown Court, had told the 36-year-old defendant he was "sti

A member of the Northern Ireland Assembly has submitted a formal complaint to the Lady Chief Justice in connection with remarks made by a judge during a sexual assault hearing. The complaint centres on comments made by Judge Brian Sherrard KC in Dungannon Crown Court as he was sentencing a man who a

The Judicial Council is, as of today, accepting complaints from members of the public about alleged judicial misconduct. Helen McEntee, the justice minister, has signed an order bringing into operation the remaining provisions of the Judicial Council Act 2019 concerning judicial conduct and ethics.

Judicial conduct and ethics guidelines adopted by the Judicial Council in February will come into force within weeks, according to reports. A spokesperson for justice minister Helen McEntee told The Irish Times that it is "envisaged" that an order bringing the relevant sections of the Judicial Act 2

Irish judges should be bound by a code of conduct even in their retirement to prevent a repeat of the controversy around the Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) Courts, a retired senior counsel has said. Bill Shipsey SC, a former chair of Amnesty International Ireland, was among the first to c

Judges have approved judicial conduct and ethics guidelines to be enforced by the Judicial Council. Chief Justice Donal O'Donnell said the new guidelines, approved in a vote of 167 judges this morning, are "not a code".

Judicial conduct and ethics guidelines to be adopted shortly by the Judicial Council will close a "gap in judicial accountability and transparency", Chief Justice Frank Clarke has said. Writing in the foreword to its annual report for 2020, Mr Justice Clarke – who is due to retire in October &

A former Belgian judge was denied an effective remedy to challenge a judicial body's decision in breach of her rights, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled. The case concerned a former judge of the High Judicial Council (CSJ) who was suspended from her duties on the grounds that she