Illegal Adoption Brought Before High Court
On the 31st of January this year, Mr Patrick FitzSymons became the first person to initiate legal proceedings against the state for its ambivalence to the practice of illegal adoptions that were being carried out by St Patrick’s Guild, an…
Artificial Intelligence: Too Smart for the Law?
Gone are the days when artificial intelligence was simply viewed as self-driving cars and talking robots. The Cambridge Analytica scandal, where personal data was improperly collected for political advertising, alerted the world to the fact that AI is deeply embedded…
European Court of Justice To Hear First Case Through Irish
The Court of Justice of the European Union (the ECJ) will, for the first time ever, hear a case brought before it in the Irish language. The case is being brought by Peadar Mac Fhlannchadha against the Irish State and…
State Fined €5M Over Galway Wind Farm
After over a decade of legal action, the European Court of Justice has imposed a penalty of €5 million on State for infringing Directive 85/337 in not carrying out an environmental impact assessment (EIA) before the construction of a wind…
Sex Work Laws in Europe: More Liberal Than You’d Think
The debate concerning the legitimacy of sex work is often shrouded in controversy, yet this has not stopped the introduction of legislation to address the matter, particularly where victims of trafficking are concerned. The 2018 report ‘Disrupt Demand’ by the…
Rampant Misuse of Corporate ‘Gagging’
In the wake of the #MeToo movement, after the accusation of sexual assault against Harvey Weinstein by over 70 women, the use of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA) has been a growing concern in public discourse and government. An NDA is an…
Budget 2020: “In the Shadow of Brexit.”
In his opening remarks, Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe said that budget 2020 was ‘developed in the shadow of Brexit.’ The budget he went on to deliver had very few surprises. In fact, the contents of this year’s budget were…
Abortion Rights: Is the North Next?
For the last few decades, Irish people have been familiarised with the image of a woman making the lonely journey across the Irish sea in an effort to seek medical care not available to them at home; however, for years…
Teanga Náisiúnta, Teanga Oifigiúil, Teanga Labhartha
Agus feachtas nua, Gaeilge4All, faoi lán seoil, le breis is 11,500 síniú ag a achainí ar líne, is fíor a rá go bhfuil an Ghaeilge go mór i mbéal an phobail le trí sheachtain anuas. Is é aidhm an fheachtais…
In Wake of a Failed Climate Case Ireland: Protesters Stand United
On Friday, 20th of September 2019, over 10,000 people took to the streets of Ireland to join a global protest calling for climate justice. The words of 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg echoed throughout the protests. Thunberg addressed the UN Climate…
Pandemonium over Prerogative Powers
“No justification with taking action of such an extreme effect has been put before the Court,’ claimed Lady Hale, President of the UK Supreme Court, in delivering the Court’s recent historic judgement. This was in response to the legality of…
Possible Implementation of a Gross Negligence Rape Offence in Ireland
Most UCD students are familiar with the animated ‘tea’ consent video, often shown in the first days of orientation to newly accepted students. While consent in concept is as easy as tea, the legislation surrounding consent and rape law it…