vLex Ireland

Irish officials investigated almost 50 unregistered food businesses in 2020 which is more than double the figure from the year before. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) was part of enquiries into 47 unregistered firms this past year compared to 19 in 2019. Investigations resulted in 17 tons of unfit or unsafe food taken... (See Article)

The High Court of Ireland has refused an application for judicial review brought by a student who sought to challenge his results from the 2020 Leaving Certificate. The primary point made by the applicant was that, as a student at Belvedere College, he was unfairly affected by the decision to not include historical school performance in the modelling for the calculated 2020 results. Giving judgment in the matter, Mr Justice Charles Meenan said that the decision to exclude a school’s past performance in the 2020 results was within the sole discretion of the Minister for Education and that there was no breach of the applicant’s legitimate expectations in the case. [2021] IEHC 128.

The Green, Green Grass of Home - Medical cannabis access in Ireland took another step forward last month when Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, introduced funding and eased the ways for patients to get access to it. (See Article)

The High Court of Ireland has granted an application for security for costs against an impecunious company suing for €228,000. The company was ordered to pay 80 percent of the defendant’s costs, which were estimated at €231,000. In delivering the judgment, Mr Justice Michael Twomey was highly critical of the current system for legal costs in Ireland. In particular, he said that it would cost more money to litigate the case than the case was worth and that it was unfair that a defendant could be sued with no hope of recovering costs from a poor plaintiff. [2021] IEHC 125.

Welcome to our February edition of Republic of Labour Law, a monthly newsletter in which we distil the most important Irish legal and HR updates from the last month in 500 words or less. (See Article)

Consumer complaints in 2020 included hair in foods, glass in soup and insects and rodent droppings in products, according to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI). In total, 2,772 grievances were handled by the FSAI’s advice line this past year, with 34 percent relating to unfit food and 30 percent to poor hygiene standards.... (See Article)

Justice Minister Helen McEntee has outlined 240 actions to “build a justice system that works for everyone” in the first of a planned series of annual justice plans. The specific actions for 2021 include improvements to the handling of sexual violence cases, the implementation of policing reform and the establishment of the new family courts structure. View here.

The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal brought by a convicted IRA member who claimed that his detention by Gardaí was unconstitutional. [2021] IESC 7.

An analysis of more than 1,000 ready-to-eat (RTE) spreads and dips in Ireland has found the majority free from contamination. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) survey investigated the prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella, Campylobacter, Enterobacteriaceae, and E. coli, which is an indicator of fecal contamination, in refrigerated RTE spreads and dips such as... (See Article)

New legislation will have to be passed by the Oireachtas before any naturalised Irish citizens can be stripped of their citizenship following a Supreme Court ruling. Having ruled last year that sections 19(2) and (3) of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956 are repugnant to the constitution, Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne yesterday made orders striking down the “offending parts of the legislation”. [2021] IESC 6.

Justice Minister Helen McEntee marked Safer Internet Day today by commencing the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related O0ffences Act 2020. The law creates two new offences, the first of which deals with the distribution or publication of intimate images without consent and with intent to cause harm. The second offence deals with the taking, distribution or publication of intimate images without consent even if there is no specific intent to cause harm. View here.

In the week of February 1, 2021, here are key developments in transatlantic trade: The EU’s COVID-19 vaccine export control mechanism is unable to escape ongoing criticism and a proposal was raised that would invoke Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol, increasing UK-EU tension Lawmakers in the US attempt to move the “American Rescue... (See Article)

The vast majority of companies in Ireland are set to benefit from a proposed new stand-alone process which will allow for them to be rescued without going to court as part of the examinership process. The proposed “summary rescue process”, now out for consultation, was designed by the Company Law Reform Group as a stand-alone process, separate from the examinership process but mirroring key elements of it. View here.

The European Union’s (EU) COVID-19 vaccine export control mechanism continued to be heavily criticized this past week, including a proposal that would have invoked Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol.  This led to increased tension between the United Kingdom (UK) and EU, amid continuing post-Brexit border customs concerns with Northern Ireland.  In the United... (See Article)

The High Court of Ireland, in a landmark judgment, has ruled in favour of four pub owners who claimed that FBD Insurance was required to cover their losses for the enforced closure of business during the coronavirus pandemic. Giving the judgment, Mr Justice Denis McDonald said that the proper interpretation of FBD’s policy was that it provided cover for an imposed closure of the businesses following the outbreak of disease with 25 miles of the premises. [2021] IEHC 78.

The Troubles, which began in 1968 and lasted until the Good Friday Agreement (GFA) in 1998, left more than 3,500 people dead. The GFA brought in a new power-sharing structure for government of N Ireland, required the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons and established a number of joint committees between the UK, N and S Ireland... (See Article)

On 15 December 2020, the Minister for Health announced Ireland’s National COVID-19 Vaccination Strategy. The first vaccine was approved for use on 21 December 2020, with the first dose administered in Ireland on 29 December 2020. A second vaccine was approved for use on 6 January 2021 and the approval of additional vaccines is anticipated... (See Article)

The Ireland-based company Brightflag, whose platform uses artificial intelligence to help corporate legal departments better manage their legal spend and legal matters, is adding a set of new reports to its existing reporting feature that are designed to provide companies with a more nuanced perspective for assessing their relationships with outside counsel. The news comes... (See Article)

The Court of Appeal has ruled that a plaintiff can re-enter Commercial Court proceedings which were struck out on consent in 2011. The proceedings had been settled prior to trial under a written settlement agreement and included a clause that the case could be re-entered into the Commercial List if there was a breach of the agreement. [2021] IECA 20.

Barristers Joanne Carroll and Cephas Power have been nominated for appointment as ordinary judges to the District Court. The first vacancy arose following retirement of Judge Constantine O’Leary in November, and the second following the retirement of Judge Anne Ryan at the start of January. View here.

The High Court of Ireland has refused an application to grant An Bord Pleanála leave to appeal a decision to overturn a planning permission for high-rise accommodation in Finglas. In rejecting the application, the court said that it was not in the public interest to grant leave. [2021] IEHC 58.

Mr Justice John Jordan, the judge in charge of the family list of the High Court of Ireland, has published a notice setting out the court’s approach to remote hearings from the 1st February 2021. The court will initially hear consent matters and uncontested applications by remote hearing. In “due course”, it will also hold remote hearings of contested matters which do not involve oral evidence and which do not exceed 40 minutes in duration. View here.

On December 15, 2020, Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (“DPC”) announced its decision to fine Twitter International Company (“Twitter”) €450,000 for failing to notify the DPC promptly of a data breach affecting EU personal data in compliance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”). The decision received all the press coverage that is to be expected for... (See Article)

A new website exploring the use of restorative justice and practices in the Irish criminal justice system has been launched with funding from the Department of Justice. The restorativejustice.ie website has been launched by the Restorative Justice: Strategies for Change (RJS4C) project and hosts the initial findings of its mapping exercise and its first tranche of case studies. View here.

Welcome to a very special January edition of Republic of Labour Law, a monthly newsletter in which we distil the most important Irish legal and HR updates from the last month in 500 words or less. (See Article)

The High Court of Ireland has struck out a plaintiff’s action for damages arising from the sale of a property for failing to comply with a court order. Applying the test set out in the Supreme Court in Tracey v. McDowell [2016] IESC 44, the court determined that there was “wholesale failure” to comply with the order and that this failure was sufficiently serious to warrant striking out the proceedings. [2021] IEHC 33.

The Courts Service and the Judiciary of Ireland, following the Government announcement extending current Level 5 restrictions, have agreed to continue current enhanced Covid-19 Level 5 protocols for the remainder of January and the month of February 2021. View here.

The Investment Limited Partnership (Amendment) Act 2020, legislation modernising investment limited partnerships in Ireland, will be fully commenced by March, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe has announced. View here.

The Court of Appeal of Ireland has overturned a Circuit Court decision to withdraw a case from a jury because the defendant was not questioned by gardaí about the alleged offences. The court said that the defendant had “no entitlement to be detained and questioned” by gardaí in order to present his story prior to trial. [2021] IECA 14.

The new FLAC Traveller Legal Service has won the maximum possible payout for a woman who was discriminated against by a hotel wedding venue. The case was adjudicated by the Workplace Relations Commission under the Equal Status Acts 2000-2018 and led to a “very significant outcome”, according to FLAC, whose Traveller Legal Service provided advice and prepared written submissions for the woman. View here.