Tony O'Connor (judge)

Tony O'Connor is an Irish lawyer who has been a Judge of the High Court since October 2015. He began his legal career as a commercial solicitor, before becoming a barrister in 1991.

The Hon. Mr. Justice

Tony O'Connor
Judge of the High Court
Assumed office
1 October 2015
Nominated byGovernment of Ireland
Appointed byMichael D. Higgins
Personal details
NationalityIrish
Alma mater

Early life

O'Connor comes from a legal family, with his father and grandfather having run a firm of solicitors in Swinford, County Mayo. His three brothers are all lawyers with his brother Pat running the family firm, John is a Judge of the Circuit Court, and Tom is a solicitor at Maples Group.[1]

He attended Glenstal Abbey School, leaving in 1977.[2] He was educated at University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, the Law Society of Ireland and the King's Inns.[3]

He first worked as solicitor, qualifying in November 1983.[4] He qualified at and worked for Arthur Cox Solicitors.[5] He was later a legal adviser to Aer Lingus and a partner at Rory O'Donnell & Co. Solicitors.[6][7] His expertise was in competition law and mergers and acquisitions.[6] He authored a text on competition law in 1996.[8]

O'Connor changed legal profession and became a barrister in 1991, becoming a senior counsel in 2006. He had experience across civil, commercial and EU law.[3] He has also acted in cases involving constitutional law and personal injuries.[9][10] He appeared for the State against Ali Charaf Damache and acted for Irish Nationwide Building Society.[11][12]

He became an accredited mediator in 2009.[6] He has been the chair of the Aviation Appeals Panel and Mental Health Tribunals.[13][14] From 2007, he acted as legal assessor for hearings of the Medical Council, Nursing Board, Dental Council and Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland.[15]

He gave evidence to Seanad Éireann in 2013 regarding the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013.[16]

Judicial career

O'Connor was appointed to the High Court in October 2015.[17] He has heard cases involving tax law,[18] extradition,[19] insolvency,[20] injunctions,[21] defamation,[22] personal injuries,[23] and commercial disputes.[24]

In 2018, he found for Graham Dwyer, the man convicted of the murder of Elaine O'Hara, ruling that the legislation relied on to secure his conviction was contrary to EU law.[25] The decision was appealed to the Supreme Court of Ireland, who in turn made a reference to the European Court of Justice.[26]

He is a member of the board of the Courts Service.[27]

In July 2020, he was appointed as a member of a three-judge tribunal into the CervicalCheck cancer scandal with chairperson Ann Power and retired judge Brian McGovern.[28] This full time position means that he is not available to hear cases in the High Court.[29]

References
  1. "Family affair as former solicitor sworn in as Circuit Court judge". www.lawsociety.ie. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  2. "Tony O'Connor (1977) appointed Judge of the High Court". GOBS.ie. 6 October 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  3. "Appointments to the Supreme Court, High Court and District Court". merrionstreet.ie. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018.
  4. "Solicitors qualify". The Irish Times. 18 November 1983. p. 14.
  5. "Swinford man qualifies as solicitor in Dublin". Connaught Telegraph. 24 November 1983. p. 14.
  6. "MARITIME LAW CONFERENCE 2011" (PDF). leanbusinessireland.ie. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  7. "The Competition Law Bill 1991 - Preparing Irish Business". The Irish Times. 30 April 1991. p. 14.
  8. O'Connor, Tony. Competition law source book. Round Hall Sweet & Maxwell. ISBN 1858000483.
  9. "Deaf brother and sister settle High Court action". Breaking News. 25 November 2008. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  10. "Garda sergeant who had leg smashed awarded €67,000". The Irish Times. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  11. "Muslim went on hunger strike over Irish prison conditions". independent. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  12. "Tuesday Newspaper Review - Irish Business News and International Stories - - December 15, 2009". www.finfacts.ie. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  13. "Appeal Panel Decision" (PDF). aviationreg. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  14. "Former legal adviser to Labour called to High Court". independent. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  15. McGee, Harry. "Iseult O'Malley to be appointed as Supreme Court judge". The Irish Times. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  16. "As it happened: Final day of the Oireachtas hearings on planned abortion laws". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  17. "Annual Report 2015" (PDF). JAAB. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  18. O'Donnell, Orla (20 December 2019). "Pizza firm loses appeal in delivery drivers' PAYE case". RTÉ News. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  19. "Man charged in connection with double murder in Belfast". RTÉ News. 13 September 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  20. "Court approves appointment of examiner to Limerick FC". RTÉ News. 13 September 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  21. "HSE secures injunction against IT worker over data". RTÉ News. 9 June 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  22. "Defamation actions over alleged Red Bull theft dismissed". The Irish Times. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  23. "High Court: Garda awarded over €40,000 for finger broken by violent detainee". Irish Legal News. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  24. "Row between medical negligence solicitors returns to court". Irish Legal News. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  25. O'Donnell, Orla (6 December 2018). "Graham Dwyer wins legal action over phone data". RTÉ News. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  26. O'Donnell, Orla (24 February 2020). "Appeal in Dwyer case referred to EU Court of Justice". RTÉ News. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  27. "Courts Service Board". Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  28. "Two more judges appointed to CervicalCheck Tribunal". RTÉ News. 31 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  29. Horgan-Jones, Jack (7 October 2020). "Date of new rules to set out personal injuries awards brought forward". The Irish Times. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
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