Northern Ireland

Queen's University Belfast has condemned "threatening and abusive commentary" aimed at human rights expert Professor Colin Harvey after he co-authored a report on Ireland's constitutional future. The university was criticised by unionist figures including DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson after its c

Human rights lawyer Les Allamby has been appointed to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. Mr Allamby is a solicitor who has previously served as director of Law Centre NI and chief commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC).

A&L Goodbody partner Christopher Jessup has been appointed as chair of FinTech NI. Mr Jessup is a partner in ALG's finance department in Belfast, focusing on financial regulatory matters.

Northern Ireland lawyers have been urged to respond to a consultation on reforms to the principal legislation governing arbitrations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Law Commission of England and Wales last month unveiled proposals to update the Arbitration Act 1996 to ensure that the UK

Barrister Nicole Lappin has been appointed as chair of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) Board. Mrs Lappin, who is qualified north and south of the border but no longer practising, will take up the role from 5 November 2022.

Northern Ireland's Department of Justice has launched a call for evidence seeking information to support any need to further extend the law on abuse of position of trust offences. The call for evidence asks whether the law should be extended beyond the new categories of sport and religion introduced

Proposals to allow coroners in Northern Ireland to hold inquests into deaths abroad have gone out for consultation. The consultation, which will run until 22 December 2022, seeks views on whether current legislation should be changed to allow an inquest to be held when a death has occurred abroad an

Northern Ireland’s High Court has determined that it was unreasonable for an applicant to be denied legal aid, including the support of a senior counsel, for his asylum appeal where he was entitled to this during his original High Court case. This application involved a challenge to a decision

A former subpostmaster convicted in connection with the Post Office Horizon scandal has become the first in Northern Ireland to have his conviction quashed. Alan McLaughlin, a subpostmaster in Belfast, was convicted in February 2005 of false accounting offences over an alleged discrepancy of around

Controversial UK government plans to end criminal prosecutions for killings linked to the Troubles are "unlikely" to comply with the European Convention on Human Rights, a Westminster committee has said. The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation Bill) proposes to create a new independ

The Bar of Northern Ireland, with the support of Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan, has launched a new Legal Diversity Project aimed at promoting equality, inclusion and social mobility throughout the legal profession. An inaugural event which took place at the Royal Courts of Justice in Belfas

The UK government has announced it will commission abortion services in Northern Ireland following the failure of the devolved Department of Health to do so. The commissioning of abortion services follows the making of regulations in May 2022 which provided the UK government with the same powers as

A new pre-action protocol for defamation and other media and communication claims has come into effect in Northern Ireland. The protocol applies to all cases in the Court of Judicature and County Court involving claims in defamation, misuse of private information, breach of confidence, data protecti

Northern Ireland will become the first part of the UK and one of the first countries in the world to introduce miscarriage leave and pay under plans now out for consultation. The two-month consultation follows the recent introduction of the Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act (Northern Ireland)

Northern Ireland’s High Court has determined that it was in the best interests for a 21-month-old child to be adopted, without a contact order, where the actions of the parents represented a cycle of neglect which showed no signs of improving. RH was born in January 2021 and was 21 months old