THREE NEW HIGH Court judges have been appointed by President Michael D Higgins this afternoon.
Marie Baker, Max Barrett and Bronagh O’Hanlon were all sworn in as judges of the High Court at Áras an Uachtarain. Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore and Attorney General Máire Whelan also attended the event.
The unusual number of vacancies arose following the death of High Court judge Mr Justice Kevin Feeney in August, coupled with the elevation to the Supreme Court of Ms Justice Mary Laffoy and Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne in October.
At 42, Max Barrett is one of the youngest High Court judges ever appointed. His appointment is somewhat unusual in that he is a solicitor rather than a barrister, which would usually be the case for most nominees.
Dr Barrett is the former head of legal and compliance at both Danske Bank Ireland and Rabobank Ireland. He also served as company secretary of IBRC which he joined in 2010 following the bank’s crash. Up until now, he was the head of legal at SEB International Assurance in Dublin.
Marie Baker became a barrister in 1984 and a Senior Counsel in 2004. She practices mainly in family, civil litigation and commercial law, and is a part-time Commissioner of the Law Reform Commission.
Bronagh O’Hanlon was called to the Bar in 1989 and became a Senior Counsel in 2005. She practices mainly in family law and civil litigation and is the chairperson of the Family Lawyers Association of Ireland.
The High Court is consists of a President and 36 judges and deals with the most serious civil and criminal cases at their first hearing.
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