Northern Ireland

The independent inquiry into the recall of around 3,000 neurology patients in Belfast has been converted to a statutory public inquiry. Health Minister Robin Swann told MLAs that the inquiry was converted to a statutory public inquiry under the Inquiries Act 2005 from 11 December 2020.

Two Newry solicitors are set to undertake a gruelling half-marathon on Christmas morning in support of Women's Aid NI. Ryan Elliott and John Murphy, both from The Elliott-Trainor Partnership Solicitors, will run 13.1 miles on Christmas Day to raise funds for the charity in Armagh and Down.

Arthur Cox has announced the appointment of Maeve Williams, James Mulligan, Chris Dickison and Lucy McKee as associates in Belfast. Ms Williams has joined the corporate and commercial team, Ms McKee has joined the finance group and Mr Mulligan and Mr Dickison have joined the property team.

A child who suffered catastrophic brain injuries in a criminal assault should receive funding for expert reports and legal representation to support his appeal for greater compensation, a legal challenge will argue. The High Court in Belfast will today consider whether to grant leave for a judicial

A district judge in Northern Ireland who openly questioned why buying sex is a criminal offence but selling sex is not will now receive "specific guidance" on the issue. The comments made by Judge Ted Magill during a criminal trial were "inappropriate", the Lord Chief Justice, Sir Declan Morgan, agr

Human rights "do not take a back seat during public emergencies", the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has said following a year of little progress on key rights issues. Launching its latest annual statement in a virtual event, the rights watchdog said there had been progress on some fronts

More gay and bisexual men will be eligible to donate blood in Northern Ireland following a further relaxation of the law. Until 2016, men who have had sex with other men were banned for life from donating blood in Northern Ireland.

Personal injury lawyers have launched legal action against Northern Ireland's Department of Justice (DOJ) over its decision not to set an interim personal injury discount rate pending legislation to introduce a new mechanism for setting the rate. The Department ran a consultation this summer on how

Two judicial review applications brought over the length of NHS waiting lists in Northern Ireland are set to be heard by the High Court in Belfast early next year. Solicitor Ciaran O'Hare of McIvor Farrell Solicitors is representing litigants May Kitchen and Eileen Wilson in the cases concerning "in

No prisoners will benefit from temporary release for Christmas this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Justice Minister Naomi Long has announced. In-person prison visits will be re-introduced over the holiday season, but the Christmas home leave scheme has been put "on pause".

Domestic homicide reviews (DHRs) have been introduced in Northern Ireland with the appointment of three independent chairs. Justice Minister Naomi Long today named Nina Noddings, Jan Melia and Anne Marks as the independent chairs leading reviews.

Belfast-based Cleaver Fulton Rankin has advised the Northern Regional College (NRC) on the development of a new state-of-the-art campus. The £40 million campus in Coleraine forms part of a wider £85 million capital investment programme funded by the Department for the Economy.

Two legal academics from Queen's University Belfast have joined a ground-breaking four-year oral history project focused on the Law Centres movement. The Centre for Socio-Legal Studies (CSLS) at the University of Oxford has been awarded a £1 million research grant from the AHRC to undertake th

Landmark domestic abuse legislation has been delayed by Justice Minister Naomi Long due to a row over legal aid and is no longer expected to become law by the end of the year. The Domestic Abuse and Family Proceedings Bill was due to be debated at the further consideration stage by MLAs yesterday bu

The practising certificate renewal process will be moved entirely online for 2021, the Law Society of Ireland has announced. The move was "necessitated by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the need to ensure a timely and efficient PC renewal process", solicitors were told in the latest president's b