Coronavirus

Legal rights group FLAC has warned in a new report of consumer over-indebtedness becoming a long-term problem in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The third of four papers in FLAC's From Pillar to Post series examines issues arising in new and existing consumer debt cases following the pandemic, ba

Around 7,500 defendants in Northern Ireland were waiting for their first court hearing at the start of October, according to new figures. Justice minister Naomi Long said the figure "is consistent with levels noted prior to the pandemic", when the number stood at around 7,200 defendants.

Northern Ireland's justice minister has set out her commitment to upgrading the courts and tribunals system in the north-west following a visit to the Bishop Street courthouse in Derry. Jury trials have not taken place at the courthouse since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic because it has not bee

Pubs and restaurants will only be allowed to serve alcohol outdoors until 11pm under changes to the emergency laws introduced to support the hospitality sector during Covid-19 public health restrictions. Justice minister Heather Humphreys said the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021, which

The backlog of cases in the criminal courts in England and Wales is likely to be a pervasive issue for several years, severely affecting all court users, according to a report by the National Audit Office (NAO). The pandemic significantly affected the work of the criminal justice system, requiring e

The Northern Ireland courts are relying on Westminster to ensure that remote hearings can continue to take place in the criminal courts beyond spring 2022, justice minister Naomi Long has said. Mrs Long has expressed concern that repeal of the UK's Coronavirus Act 2020 "would make it impossible to c

Judicial salaries in Northern Ireland and across the UK have been frozen for a year, new figures from the Ministry of Justice show. The Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, Sir Declan Morgan, received a salary of £234,184 in 2019. This rose to £238,868 last year but has remained the s

Witness actions in the High Court will be listed for a physical hearing as the "default position" from next week, the president of the High Court has announced. In a statement on the management of court proceedings in the Michaelmas term, Ms Justice Mary Irvine said remote hearings would only be use

Two-thirds of HR professionals believe that some employees will simply refuse to return to the workplace following the Covid-19 pandemic, a new survey by business law firm Mason Hayes & Curran LLP suggests. Over 200 HR professionals from both the public and private sectors were surveyed at a rec

The number of prisoners on remand in Northern Ireland rose to a record high last year as the Covid-19 pandemic paralysed the courts system. The remand population increased by nearly 11 per cent to 545 for the 2020/21 financial year, the highest level since reporting by financial year began in 2014/1

Lisa Bryson, partner and head of employment at Eversheds Sutherland in Belfast, considers where employers in Northern Ireland stand in relation to the "return to the office". As we approach the autumn, minds will inevitably turn to the final quarter of 2021 and many will begin thinking about next ye

Immigration and international protection permissions have been extended again until the middle of January 2022 in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This is the eighth extension announced since the start of the pandemic, almost all of which were billed as the "final" extension.

Data-driven measures to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic such as contact logging and tracing raise data protection concerns, experts from the Covid-19 Law and Human Rights Observatory at Trinity College Dublin have said. In a 69-page report published today, legal experts recommend the government should

Northern Ireland's justice minister Naomi Long has reassured Derry solicitors that the city's Bishop Street courthouse will reopen "once Covid has passed". Department of Justice officials have met with the Law Society of Northern Ireland and are set to meet with the Foyle Local Solicitors Associatio

A disabled child in Northern Ireland, represented by the Children's Law Centre, has been successful in a High Court challenge of the decision to repurpose temporary respite care facilities during the Covid-19 pandemic. The child, now aged 12, was adversely affected by the decision to repurpose a fac