Carmel Stewart

Last updated

The Hon. Ms. Justice
Carmel Stewart
Judge of the High Court
Assumed office
30 October 2014

Carmel Stewart (born 1957) is an Irish judge and lawyer who has served as a Judge of the High Court since October 2014. She previously served as a Judge of the Circuit Court from 2012 and 2014.

Contents

Early life

Stewart was born in Tuam, County Galway, in 1957. She attended the Presentation Convent in Tuam. [1] She finished her Leaving Certificate in 1975 and began studying law at University College Dublin. She decided to leave UCD and worked until she began studying in University College Galway in 1980. [2] She graduated with BA and LLB degrees. [3] She undertook studies to become a barrister at the King's Inns. [4]

She was called to the Bar in 1987 and became a senior counsel in 2008. She devilled with Catherine McGuinness in her first year as a barrister. [2] She specialised in constitutional and public law, [5] including family law, adoption and wards of court. [4]

She appeared in several cases involving abortion in the Republic of Ireland. She acted for the Irish Family Planning Association in an action against Youth Defence. [6] She represented the applicants in A, B and C v Ireland in the European Court of Human Rights in 2009. [7]

She acted as Vice Chairperson of the Employment Appeals Tribunal [8] and was a member of the Mountjoy Prison Visiting Committee between 1996 and 1999. [9] She was a board member of the National College of Art and Design [10]

She was a board member and director of the Free Legal Advice Centres and a chairperson of the Family Lawyers Association. [1] She was a member of the Labour Party and a member of the party executive. [11] [12]

Judicial career

Circuit Court

Stewart became a Judge of the Circuit Court in April 2012. [13] She was assigned to the Dublin circuit. [1] She presided over cases involving criminal law and family law. [14]

High Court

In October 2014, she was elevated to the High Court. [15] She frequently hears trials at the Central Criminal Court involving serious criminal offences, including rape and murder. [16] [17] She also hears cases involving vulnerable people, [18] deportation, [19] injunctions, [20] and the Criminal Assets Bureau. [21]

She has presided over cases involving ISIL and the Hutch–Kinahan feud. [19] [22] In October 2018, she discharged a jury after a ten-day trial after barrister Paul Anthony McDermott had explained the defence of provocation in the context of an unrelated trial on an edition of RTÉ's Prime Time . [23]

She was appointed a part-time commissioner of the Law Reform Commission in September 2015. [24] She was appointed for a five-year term to replace Marie Baker. [25]

Personal life

She is married to Noel Grehan. [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Tuam woman appointed a Circuit Court judge". Tuam Herald. 21 March 2012. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Ms Justice Carmel Stewart". YouTube. NUI Galway. Archived from the original on 29 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  3. ↑ "COMMISSIONERS". LRC. Archived from the original on 27 May 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  4. ↑ "Courts Service News" (PDF). JAAB. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  5. ↑ "Court orders Youth Defence to keep away from family planning clinics and staff". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  6. ↑ A, B and C v Ireland Archived 2020-07-03 at the Wayback Machine (Application no. 25579/05) European Court of Human Rights (16 December 2010)
  7. ↑ "Written Answers. - Ministerial Appointments. – Dáil Éireann (27th Dáil) – Wednesday, 5 Mar 1997 – Houses of the Oireachtas". www.oireachtas.ie. 5 March 1997. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  8. ↑ "Written Answers. - Ministerial Appointments. – Dáil Éireann (28th Dáil) – Dé Máirt, 16 Noll 1997 – Tithe an Oireachtais". www.oireachtas.ie (in Irish). 16 December 1997. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  9. ↑ "Written Answers. - Membership of State Boards. – Dáil Éireann (27th Dáil) – Dé Máirt, 3 DFómh 1995 – Tithe an Oireachtais". www.oireachtas.ie (in Irish). 3 October 1995. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  10. ↑ Cormaic, Ruadhán Mac. "Four new judges selected to fill vacancies on High Court". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 1 December 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  11. ↑ "Labour party executive". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  12. ↑ "Annual Report 2012" (PDF). JAAB. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  13. ↑ "Judge Carmel Stewart". World Congress on Family Law and Children’s Rights. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  14. ↑ "Annual Report 2014" (PDF). JAAB. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  15. ↑ "Rape trial collapses as complainant leaves the country". RTÉ News. 4 July 2019. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  16. ↑ Traynor, Vivienne (23 October 2019). "Mother not guilty of murder by reason of insanity". RTÉ News. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  17. ↑ "Court hears man removed his feeding tubes over 60 times". RTÉ News. 15 August 2019. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  18. 1 2 "Court clears way for man's deportation". RTÉ News. 28 December 2015. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  19. ↑ O'Brien, Fergal (16 August 2019). "Ryanair to seek injunction blocking Irish pilot strike". RTÉ News. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  20. ↑ O'Faolain, Aodhan. "Supreme Court refuses to hear appeal over finding CAB can appoint receiver to property". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 2 June 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  21. ↑ Reynolds, Paul (17 May 2020). "Daniel Kinahan 'reinventing' himself as boxing promoter". RTÉ News. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  22. ↑ "Trial collapse over Prime Time discussion of other case". RTÉ News. 5 December 2018. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  23. ↑ "Annual Report 2015" (PDF). JAAB. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  24. ↑ "Annual Report 2015" (PDF). LRC. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
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