Tony McGillicuddy SC

Tony is a Senior Counsel since October 2022, having previously practised as a Junior Counsel from 2004 – 2022.

Recent cases, all of which are concluded before the Courts, include:

Criminal Law:

DPP v. Derek Lennon [2021] IECA 30 (sentencing guidelines for the offence of witness intimidation)

DPP v. F.R. & A.R. [2020] 2 IR 719 (search warrants)

DPP v. Gary Campion [2019] 1 ILRM 37 (competency of witness)

Article 40 Applications and Judicial Review:

Hennelly v. Governor of Mountjoy Prison [2021] IEHC 723 and [2021] IECA 330 – Contempt of court issues and Order 42 of the RSC considered by the High Court and Court of Appeal.

Ryan v. Governor of Mountjoy Prison (Supreme Court) [2020] 2 ILRM 48 (whether an Article 40 application can be dismissed as an abuse of process)

C.I. v. Member in Charge of Dun Laoghaire Garda Station [2020] IEHC 512 (bringing an accused person before the court as soon as practicable, and complications arising from Covid issues)

Sean Farrell and Ciaran Maguire v. Superintendent of Letterkenny Garda Station [2019] IEHC 67 and 69 (High Court) [2019] IECA 278 (Court of Appeal in both cases)

Constitutional Law:

Carter v. The Minister for Education and Skills [2020] 1 IR 244 – consideration of the constitutional right to education.

Darragh Galvin v. DPP, AG and Ireland [2020] IECA 319 -The Court of Appeal upheld the High Court decision that the matter proceed by way of plenary action and set out guiding principles for future cases involving constitutional challenges, and when such cases should proceed by way of plenary action rather than by Judicial Review.

Extradition Law: 

Minister for Justice v. Harrison [2020] IECA 159

Minister for Justice v. J.A.T. (Supreme Court) [2016] 2 ILRM 262 – The Supreme Court held that the exceptional circumstances of the case constituted an abuse of process such that surrender should be refused.

Minister for Justice v. Ciaran Maguire [2020] IECA 341

Civil and Other:

District Court (2021) – Presented the Garda objections to renewal of licences for the Berlin Bar in Dublin 2, which were accepted by District Judge Marie Quirke.

Purcell v. Central Bank [2016] IEHC 514, which was an unsuccessful challenge against the Administrative Sanctions Procedures contained within the Central Bank Act, 1942 (as amended)

Please note all papers listed hereunder are available on request from Tony.

Diploma in Criminal Law and Practice at the Law Society of Ireland – 8th October 2021

Tony delivered a lecture on the Criminal Justice (Forensic Evidence and DNA Database System) Act, 2014 for practising solicitors, focusing on the practical aspects of the law relating to the taking of forensic samples from suspects for criminal investigations and evidential issues for subsequent trials.

Tony has lectured on this Diploma for the Law Society for the last three years, with the latter two lectures being delivered online due to public health regulations arising from the pandemic.

Professional Regulatory Disciplinary Bar Association – 20th April 2021

Tony delivered a webinar lecture on Searches in Regulatory Investigations – Unanswered questions on privacy and privilege from the CRH case.

This paper was delivered to update barristers on the implications, and some unanswered questions, from the CRH case (CRH v. Competition and Consumer Protection Commission [2018] I IR 521) and to also update them on issues of legal privilege from the United Kingdom which would affect the materials that can be seized on foot of a search by a regulatory body.

Honorable Society of King’s Inns White Collar Crime Course –
Lecture delivered on Taking Witness Statements and Dealing with Suspects – 14th January 2021

Tony delivered this lecture from 2019 – 2021 on this Course. The course was not run in 2022.

This paper is tailored towards assisting lawyers and investigators in best practice on the taking of statements from witnesses during investigations into white collar crime while also emphasising the rights of suspects in such investigations and when to spot that such rights are engaged.

Health and Safety Lawyers Association of Ireland – 19th September 2019

Tony delivered a lecture at a breakfast symposium on Engagement with the Regulator, Compellability issues, Implications of CRH case and other matters.

This paper was tailored towards investigations carried out by the Health and Safety Authority, and examined issues such as the powers of the Authority to compel the provision of documents, statements or other items, the implications of the CRH case (privacy and legal privilege issues) and other matters about such investigations before a prosecution is instituted.

• Elected Member of the Bar Council (2011 – 2019)
• Founding member of the Irish Criminal Bar Association (2007)
• Chairperson of the Appeals Board for the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland established under Section 24 of the Building Control Act, 2007 (2022 – 2025)
• Chairperson of the Technical Assessment Board for the RIAI, established under Section 21 of the Building Control Act, 2007, from 2016 – 2022
• Tony was the Chair of the Human Rights Committee of the Bar Council when the Council submitted an Amicus Brief on behalf of the Petitioner in a death penalty case to the U.S. Supreme Court  – Shonda Walter v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (No. 15/360) in January 2016. Tony co-ordinated the input of the Bar Council to that Amicus Brief to join other international Bar Associations in making the application in that case.
• Tony was also Chair of the Human Rights Committee when the Committee selected the Irish Navy as the first recipient of the Bar of Ireland Human Rights Award. The Irish Navy was presented with that award on the 13^th October 2016.