Financial obstructions to justice and the law

(Originally published in Law Ireland, Vol 1, Issue 6) The laws of maintenance and champerty were applied in the case of Persona Digital Telephony Ltd v. Minister for Public Enterprise [2017] IESC 27, reported in this issue. The decision has already been the subject of...
Are there too many written judgments?

Are there too many written judgments?

(Originally published in Law Ireland, Volume 1, issue 4) One of the fears of a trial lawyer in preparing submissions is that he or she will have missed a recent judgment of direct relevance to the case at trial. But the task of keeping up-to-date with recent cases is...

A Sacred Office

(Originally published in Law Ireland, Volume 1, issue 5.) The power of a judge is awesome, in the literal sense of the word. In any society, somebody has to make the difficult decisions. When a couple separates, which parent should the children live with? When should...

Bill Hurley’s Notebook

(Originally published in Volume 1, issue 1 of Law Ireland.) Older colleagues at the bar have told me of a barrister named Bill Hurley. He was a former Group Captain in the RAF, who saw some action during the second World War. He was legendary for keeping meticulous...

The Law of the Horse

(Originally published in Volume 1, issue 2, of Law Ireland. In the 1990s, with the increased accessibility of the internet and the development of the world wide web, a debate developed over whether this required a new type of law. It was suggested by Judge Frank H....