Many of our clients seek advice regarding the legality of divorces acquired outside of Ireland. The legality of foreign divorces can often be quite a complicated point of law. In some cases, a declaration to confirm the validity of the divorce is required. This must be sought through the family law Circuit Court in Ireland. […]
Nullity of marriage is a declaration by a court that your marriage is null and void, and that no valid marriage exists between you and your partner. In order for a court to grant a decree of nullity, it must be satisfied that the purported marriage was either void or voidable. A void marriage is […]
Anybody who has children and has been involved in the family law proceedings will be familiar with reports prepared under section 47 of the Family Law Act, 1995. These reports are generally prepared by expert child psychologists and courts will feel themselves, if not bound by the findings in these reports, then they would regard […]
The judge had to decide how much maintenance a mother and the father had to pay to look after their 7-year-old son. The mother earns €60,000 a year, the father earns €20,000 a year. The judge accepted that the earnings figures were correct. When all the evidence had concluded, the mother said could she say […]
A client can be in a very difficult position when they decide to leave their solicitor and instruct somebody new. The first solicitor is entitled to insist that his/her fees be paid in full before they release their file to the new solicitor. This can often create difficulties because the client generally will only leave […]
You defame somebody if you make a false allegation about them and that allegation has been made known to third parties. There are however certain defences open to the person who made the defamatory statements. One of the defences is that of privilege. Privilege can be absolute privilege, which generally refers to comments made in […]
Guardianship relates to the duties of a person as to the welfare, care and upbringing of a child. A guardian has a duty to maintain and care for the child and has a right to make decisions in major areas of the child’s life. For example, a guardian can decide where a child can attend […]
Mario Gonzales recently brought the Spanish government to the European Court of Justice arguing that data should be removed from Google if it was no longer accurate or relevant or it was excessive or inadequate. In his case, if you searched his name in Spain, an article would appear describing how he had to sell […]
It is important to make a will simply because if you die without a will, the law on intestacy decides what happens to your property and assets. A will can ensure that proper arrangements are made for your dependents and ensures that your assets are distributed in the way you wish. This will be subject […]
We often read in newspapers about terrible cases where animals have been mistreated. The general outcome is that the person who abused the animal will be fined or in extremely rare cases they might be sent to prison. I am of the view that at some point in the not too distant future, an abused […]
If you reveal your secrets to the wind, you should not blame the wind for revealing them to the trees. ~Khalil Gibran, Sand and Foam In the age of social media, we all need to be aware of the saying ‘that the spoken word can never be unspoken’ especially as increasingly we play out our […]
If a client has a problem with a solicitor and is considering making a claim on the Law Society Compensation Fund, that claim must be received by the Law Society within six months of the loss coming to attention of the claimant.
