Northern Ireland

The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) has set aside the convictions of 15 individuals for certain sexual offences as a result of a legislative error which caused them to be invalid. The PPS conducted a review of all cases potentially impacted after prosecutors became aware of a technical change

Plans to regulate gambling in Northern Ireland are due to be set out after a public consultation found overwhelming support for a new independent regulator. Around 90 per cent of 382 responses to the Department for Communities' consultation on gambling laws supported the establishment of a regulator

The legacy pension scheme for victims of the Troubles will likely not open for applications until March 2021, Justice Minister Naomi Long has said. The Department of Justice was designated last month as the administrator of the scheme, allowing its implementation to move forward.

Arthur Cox has announced the appointment of partners Lynsey Mallon and Stuart Mansfield to the firm's leadership in Northern Ireland. Ms Mallon will lead the Belfast office's corporate and commercial team, while Mr Mansfield will head the banking and finance team.

Belfast solicitor Niall Murphy, partner at KRW LAW, will chair this year's Belfast International Homecoming Legal Symposium, which will take place online due to the Covid-19 crisis. The symposium on 1-2 October will focus on "professional pathways in law – from Belfast to beyond", with a panel

Proposals to increase the minimum age of criminal responsibility in Northern Ireland, which currently stands at 10 years of age, are under consideration by ministers. Justice Minister Naomi Long has confirmed in response to a written Assembly question that she wrote to her Executive colleagues last

Retired solicitor and politician David Cook, who became the first non-unionist Lord Mayor of Belfast in the late 1970s, passed away yesterday.

Consideration should be given to including a specific freedom of expression defence in hate crime laws, the PSNI has suggested. In the force's response to the consultation on hate crime laws, it said legislation "should equally balance the human rights of all within society".

Belfast-based Cleaver Fulton Rankin has been shortlisted by Investors in People (IIP) for a prestigious international employment award. The firm is competing against eight other companies from across the globe for the "Employer of the Year: Accredited 50-249" award. The winner will be named at

New powers to tackle modern slavery and human trafficking could be introduced in Northern Ireland following new evidence of their use in Great Britain. Dame Sara Thornton, the UK's independent anti-slavery commissioner, has urged Justice Minister Naomi Long to introduce slavery and trafficking risk

A law firm set up by Lurgan solicitor Harry McCourt at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic has expanded to form McCourt McGlone Solicitors. Founded as McCourt Solicitors in June, the firm has moved from strength to strength with the appointment of new partner Ciaran McGlone, who has extensive experi

Case processing times improved across all courts in the year ending April 2020, according to new figures. The Department of Justice has published new statistics on the average case processing time for criminal cases in the Crown and magistrates' courts in Northern Ireland between 1 April 2019 and 31

Barrister Peter Coll QC is leading the investigation into Belfast City Council's handling of the controversial cremation of Bobby Storey, according to reports. Mr Coll had earlier been named as the council's preferred choice late last month, but the council has only now confirmed that he has been ap

The Bar of Northern Ireland has reaffirmed its commitment to the maintenance of the rule of law in a short statement issued in the wake of the UK government's U-turn on Brexit. Earlier this week, Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis told MPs that provisions in the Internal Market Bill would "bre

New adult safeguarding legislation to help protect care home residents and other vulnerable members of society is set to be brought to Stormont under plans announced yesterday. Health Minister Robin Swann pledged to bring forward the new Adult Safeguarding Bill in response to the first report&n