Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland parents should no longer be able to avail of the "reasonable punishment" defence to justify physically punishing a child, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) has said. A new report published by the charity, which represents children's doctors in the UK, calls f

New law to provide greater protection for the owners of defective properties in Northern Ireland is to be brought forward. Northern Ireland's communities minister Gordon Lyons said the move would bring an end to the "unfair disparity" between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The head of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) has signed a pledge to uphold the rule of law and the independence of the legal profession. Chief commissioner Alyson Kilpatrick joined Law Society president Darren Toombs to sign the Society's new pledge, launched in response to incre

New climate change reporting duties for Northern Ireland public bodies will come into operation in May 2024. Regulations laid in line with the landmark Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 will require the first reports to be submitted in October 2025.

Jim McCooe has been appointed to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland for a three-year term. Mr McCooe is currently a non-executive director and chair of the audit committee at Northern Ireland's Department of Health. He is also business improvement director at Healthy Kidz.

Belfast-based Paschal O'Hare Personal Injury Solicitors has welcomed Amy Brady as a solicitor in the firm's personal injury team. Ms Brady qualified as a solicitor in 2021, having graduated from the University of Liverpool with an undergraduate degree in law in 2017.

Belfast lawyer Jude Copeland is to address a major legal technology conference in London next week. Mr Copeland, a legal technology specialist at Cleaver Fulton Rankin, will speak at the Future Lawyer UK conference on the shifting landscape of client expectations and the imperative for law firms to

Justice ministers Helen McEntee and Naomi Long have met to discuss north-south co-operation across a range of criminal justice matters.

Three new independent members have been appointed to the Northern Ireland Policing Board (NIPB) for the next four years. Marian Cree, Patrick Nelson and Thomas O'Reilly were appointed by justice minister Naomi Long following a public appointment competition.

Plans to introduce a standalone criminal offence of assaulting a retail worker in England and Wales should be extended to Northern Ireland, an industry lobby group has said. The UK government yesterday announced a retail crime crackdown, with assaulting a retail worker to be punishable with up to si

The Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, Dame Siobhan Keegan, and Madam Justice Denise McBride shared their journey to the senior judiciary as the keynote speakers at a Belfast event for women lawyers and law students. Hosted by QUB Women in Law, the annual networking event, now in its third year

Northern Ireland prosecutors will announce next week if they are bringing perjury charges against former British soldiers who gave evidence to inquiries into Bloody Sunday. The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) has told lawyers acting for victims and survivors of the 1972 massacre that its decision w

Laura Cunningham of Carson McDowell highlights a recent English court ruling on data breach claims where there is little evidence of actual harm. The ruling handed down by Nicklin J in the case of Fairly and 473 others v Paymaster (1936) Limited (trading as Equiniti) [2024] EWHC 383 (KB) is an indic

Belfast firm KRW LAW LLP has promoted Róise Fitzpatrick and Setanta Marley to partner. Mr Marley, a specialist Troubles-related litigator, will head up the firm's specialist conflict litigation department, while Ms Fitzpatrick, a criminal defence practitioner, will lead the firm's summary cri

The Law Society of Northern Ireland has launched a new initiative aimed at supporting the mental health and wellbeing of members of the legal profession and their support staff.