As prefigured here a little while ago, there is a new peer-reviewed Irish legal journal, the Irish Journal of Legal Studies. The publication of Volume 1, Issue 1, 2010 has just been announced on the journal’s homepage, and the contents of the first issue are as follows:

Sexual Violence: Witnesses and Suspects, a Debating Document by Mr Justice Peter Charleton and Stephen Byrne. From the abstract:

This article explores the rules of evidence and criminal procedure as they apply in sexual offence cases, in the context of recent empirical accounts of attrition rates in sexual offences, and having regard to the rights of the accused and the need to maintain a fair balance that limits the potential for injustice.

The Constitution and the Protestant Schools cuts Controversy: Seeing the Wood for the Trees by Eoin Daly. From the abstract:

This article argues that special financial arrangements for Protestant secondary schools, recently controversially withdrawan, constituted a species of constitutionally permissible, if not constitutionally required, accommodation of religion. This controversy also serves as a prism through which to view the broader limitations of the constitutional framework for the guarantee of religious freedom in the education context.

Managerialism in Irish Universities by Professor Steve Hedley. From the abstract:

This article considers the controversial concept of “managerialism” in modern Irish university law and practice.

.

Antipsychotic Use in Nursing Homes: Human Rights and the Elderly by Dr Frances Matthews. From the abstract:

This paper describes challenging behaviour in older adults; possible responses to that behaviour, including medication; the nature and use of antipsychotics; the rights threatened by the administration of such drugs; and possible solutions.

Book Review: Alison Mawhinney Freedom of Religion and Schools: The Case of Ireland (Saarbrücken, VDM Verlag, 2009 | Amazon) reviewed by Dr Conor O’Mahony. From the pdf:

The curious nature of the Irish primary school system, where schools are titled “National Schools” and funded by the State, but are exclusively owned and managed by private bodies, has been the object of some comment and litigation over the years. Dr Mawhinney’s work has made the picture a little clearer for all concerned.

The Irish Journal of Legal Studies is run by members of the Law Faculty, University College Cork, and is generously supported by a grant from the National Academy for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning. This is a superb development. Well done to all concerned!

Congratulations, and welcome. Comhghairdeachas, agus fáilte.