On Being Surprised and not Surprised

Certainly, I am not surprised that two of the politically appointed Senior Irish Judges went happily on to work for questionable money, with a known to be unconscionable foreign judicial system, after their retirement from The Irish Bench .

My own experience in Ireland of some of the Judgements delivered by each of these men can be seen as being less than inspiring or truly just in kind.

For example, you may wish to see and examine an Irish / Cork -based travesty of Justice in Coillte Teoranta v Skylink and Walter Evans.
This was unfortunately, passed from the fair and reasonable hands of judge Ricky Johnson of Kerry, on to Judge Frank Clark, who duly passed it on to Judge Feeney, who like Judge De Valera of The Irish High Court was unwilling at High Court level to best facilitate real Justice here, in a truly corrective way -

This latter, being probably indicated given that there was cogent evidence of there being no Registrar at all ,functioning at the 2 Circuit Court Hearings in Cork -which unjustly enriched Coillte Teoranta Éireann with Skylink’s and Walter Evan’s then very valuable telecommunications ‘ business lease -

The probably wrong conduct of this Case -was described by Michael Mc Dowell -SC ,at The Irish High Court as a « legal catastrophe « —
Yet, senior counsel Mc Dowell, who was introduced In Trust into this Matter by myself -as junior counsel, at the time -towards achieving a very precise and specified corrective — to more just effect -before the President Judge Ricky Johnson, who was the only judge involved here, who reached out to seek to deliver, what may have become a sane and sensible just outcome for Walter Evan’s and his nice West Cork -based family .

Later, Mr Mc Dowell removed myself to favour a far less experienced Counsel and now naming myself as Consultant to this Case !!!

Later still and really probably from much earlier -I noticed that Mc Dowell’s performance here left a lot to be desired by those genuinely seeking redress of a ‘catastrophic ‘state of bad legal affairs at this precise stage ,of a protracted litigation process to hand .

Finally, after a whole nine month period — in what was given him as an urgent matter, Mr Mc Dowell presented very very late in Judge Johnson’s High Court on that judge’s last day on The Bench — I was then sure that there would be zero corrective justice on Appeal for Walter Evans and such is the wrong state of Cork -based affairs — regarding the unjust enrichment of Coillte Teoranta from Skylink -to this very day -

Then, a Mr Harrington TD of Cork got somewhat involved but his Office achieved no valuable accountability for Walter -

Also and much later , another Cork -based TD of that area, Michael Collins -raised the judge -based granting of Walter’s valuable business lease to Coillte Teoranta as « white collar crime « in Dail Eireann -but he too has delivered nothing of meaning to redress the unjust enrichment to Coillte as delivered by Irish judges and Irish judicial system .’
So -it is not surprising that even two judges from this jurisdiction have been called out as inappropriately working for profit in questionable regimes -

What is surprising to myself is that elements of Irish Press -are referencing Bill Shipsey SC — in this context as a champion of Human Rights — ,Certainly , such is not my own experience of this lawyer -in relation to his engagement as part of Michael Crowe’s legal Team -working out of Waterford -EIRE .
Mr Crowe was a gentleman businessman, who owned an excellent premises on the lovely quayside in Waterford City .

I myself was privileged to spend 2 hours or more in consultation with Mr Crowe on the evening before he passed, before he went out to dine with his lovely family for the last time .

Michael wanted me , if possible, to contribute to a Case he was pursuing against his previous lawyers -one of whom was Mr Bill Shipsey -
He had lost a fine property on Waterford Quays to the benefit of a local solicitor there .

Michael’s view was that this above was not the Ruling of a proper and fair judge -the Judge in Case was Judge Peter Kelly

And he ruled over Michael’s property to the solicitor -despite the proper law applicable being that enforceable Contracts for The Sale of property must be in writing -
There was no such written material in place here, Michael’s promise to sell being verbal only !

As a result ,this gentle business and family man, who passed away the next morning round 8 am -and at that time he was complaining that a second legal team in Wicklow ,were unduly delaying in holding the Waterford Firm to account -despite knowing he was terminally Ill -

He mentioned a new barrister, one Mr Mc Eochaidh — also a judge of the Irish Bench at. a later stage -that his experience of this man had been especially traumatic and unduly difficult for him to tolerate .

My own experience of Mc Eochaidh at a more recent Equity Case was very much short of duly inspirational and I was reminded of Mr Crowe’s dying complaint .-indeed !

Further, Judge Kelly and the County Waterford solicitor featured in a Commercial High Court Case entitled O Connor v Power -
Here Judge Kelly acted very oppressively towards myself as counsel for Martin Power -and this judge presented in a very defensive mode .

Later, he complained myself to The Bar committees in unlawful terms -leading on to committee circumstances ,where Mr Shipsey ought not have been allowed any presence, but was actually given such by his colleague Martin Gleason -SC -and where he spoke untruths about myself in a context where my opposing colleague, Mr Martin Hayden SC -commenced his evidence there with the statement that he had NO issue, at all with my own functioning for Mr Power in the Case where Judge Kelly for his own reasons , was creating -what many might name as a Racket -

A very admirable senior counsel advised myself beforehand to bring in lawyers from outside this jurisdiction to answer Judge Kelly’s wrong allegations -he stated that judge Kelly had been best man at the wedding of the then Chairperson of the Irish Bar Council and that I had zero chanch of getting a fair Hearing there -

This latter turned out to be true and the Bar Council duly and unjustly imposed an ‘extortionistic ‘ fine on myself, which I have never paid as I was Not the wrongdoer in this setting -
Also a Tara Burns SC ,now a judge -told untruths at The Kings Inns regarding this non payment of fine imposed -saying that there was no digital audio Record (DAR ) of this Issue before judge Kelly -which of course there was but it was denied to the Hearing and wrongly suppressed by Judge Kelly -as it would prove the correctness of Hayden’s evidence that the wrong Issue at that Hearing was not emanating from myself -but in fact was unilaterally generated by Judge Kelly .from some fearful perception of his own -

Essentially, one is referring here to the Culture of the Irish Bar and of Irish legal Systems -

Perhaps, as with The Roman Catholic Church and other structural societal Institutions in EIRE -there is an urgent need for root and branch Reform -

It may be that such Reform is long overdue to deliver best Service here for the Individual and Common Good -

Also -It may well be that these 2 judges -who have been called
out for being willing to deliver for wrong foreign regimes are simply part of a less than optimal politically appointed and manipulated judicial system that is , in truth in need of very foundational and radical Reform -perhaps -these judges are the cultural rule rather than the exception here -

The invitation
in conclusion ,to a reader here
is to be party to this possibly of essential change -
and in order to end on an Est-ian phrase for the creation of something deemed an unlikely transformation of things -
-‘if not YOU to lead this Possibility for GOOD — then WHO
And

If not NOW then WHEN ?
We end with this Invitation here .

Thank you for your interest -

Angela Heavey

Academic and Lawyer -August 22 -