Ninth Level Ireland

“A Leaving Certificate student’s High Court challenge over a refusal to allow private tutors assist in assessing his calculated grades will not be heard until July 2nd. The boy, who cannot be named, had received private tutoring because he had not been attending his school after refusing to obey a requirement that he wear a face mask in the common areas …” (more)

[BreakingNews.ie, 16 June]

“A landlord has welcomed a High Court order quashing a ruling by a district court judge which held him responsible for noise pollution emanating from students holding lockdown parties at two of his properties near University College Cork …” (more)

[Barry Roche, Irish Times, 15 April]

“A student’s decision not to appeal the High Court’s rejection of his lead challenge to the calculated grades model for the Leaving Cert 2020 exam appears likely to halt many, if not all, similar cases. Mr Justice Charles Meenan was told on Wednesday that Freddie Sherry, a Leaving Cert student at Dublin’s fee-paying Belvedere College last year, is not appealing the judge’s dismissal of his case …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, BreakingNews.ie, 14 April]

“Sir, – I note that a University of Limerick graduate is taking a constitutional action relating to the university franchise (‘Failure to extend Seanad vote is unconstitutional, High Court told’, News, March 3rd). As long ago as August 1979, the seventh amendment to the Constitution permitted the reform by law of the university franchise to allow holders of degrees from Irish institutions other than the NUI colleges and the University of Dublin (Trinity College) to be represented in Seanad Éireann in a separate constituency …” (more)

[Eunan O’Halpin, Irish Times, 4 March]

“The fact the Constitution is a living document is not a licence to allow for the setting up of conflicts which render its meaning indeterminate, the State has argued in a case over the alleged failure to extend voting rights for Seanad elections …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 3 March]

“The fight to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus has involved the imposition by the State of restrictions on almost every aspect of our lives. The young, the old, those with disabilities, and those without have all been affected, some to a greater degree than others. To halt the spread of the virus, it is necessary to limit, if not restrict entirely, the circumstances under which people meet and congregate. In excess of 62,000 students were due to sit the Leaving Certificate in 2020 …” (more)

Sherry v The Minister for Education and Skills and Others (Approved) [2021] IEHC 128 (2 March 2021)

“The High Court has begun hearing a challenge to the current system of eligibility for University graduates to vote in Seanad elections. Tomás Henegan, a civil servant and graduate of the University of Limerick, says a refusal by the State to treat him equally to graduates of other universities and third level institutions who are allowed to vote in Seanad elections is a breach of his Constitutional rights …” (more)

[Vivienne Traynor, RTÉ News, 2 March]

“The official reaction from the Minister for Education Norma Foley was muted. ‘The Minister for Education has received the judgment of Mr Justice Meenan given today in the case taken by a student in relation to the calculated grades system for Leaving Certificate 2020 and notes its content’ …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 2 March]

“A High Court judge has dismissed the lead challenge over the calculated grades process adopted for the Leaving Certificate 2020 exam in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. A core issue in the case was whether the Minister for Education’s direction to remove school historical data in the calculated grades process was unlawful …” (more)

[Tim Healy, Independent, 2 March]

“A High Court judge will rule on Tuesday on the lead challenge over the calculated grades process adopted for the Leaving Certificate 2020 exam in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Justice Charles Meenan heard the lead action by Freddie Sherry, who was a 2020 Leaving Cert student at Belvedere College, Dublin, over some five weeks before the case concluded in early February …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 1 March]

“A High Court judge will give judgment within the coming weeks on the lead challenge over the calculated grades process adopted for the Leaving Certificate 2020 exam in response to the Covid pandemic. On Wednesday, Mr Justice Charles Meenan, when case managing some 60 other actions brought over the calculated grades, said he was adjourning those for further mention to March 10th …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 17 February]

“The High Court has dismissed a bid by a former Human Resources Director with the University of Limerick’s to halt an investigation into his alleged role in the suspected misuse of funds regarding the college’s pension scheme …” (more)

[Aodhan O’Faolain, Limerick Leader, 11 February]
[The ruling is here.]

“A challenge has been mounted against a decision of An Bord Pleanala to grant planning permission for a 216-bed student accommodation development in Cork City. The action has been brought by an association that represents local residents, who are opposed to the demolition of an existing structure and the construction of the student housing development consisting of 30 apartments located at Orchard Road in Cork City …” (more)

[Ann O’Loughlin, BreakingNews.ie, 17 December]

“The standardisation process used to estimate Leaving Certificate grades would not have discriminated against students attending disadvantaged schools even if data about schools’ past performances in the exam had been included, the High Court has heard …” (more)

[Ann O’Loughlin, BreakingNews.ie, 10 December]

“Changes made by the Minister for Education to the model used to assess calculated Leaving Certificate grades systematically disadvantaged good students attending high performing schools, the High Court has been told. Feichín McDonagh SC, for student Freddie Sherry, said expert evidence will show the Minister’s decision not to use historical data on school’s past performances in the Leaving Cert resulted in a disproportionate reduction in the grades his client had received from his teachers …” (more)

[Aodhan O’Faolain, Irish Times, 9 December]

“The Minister for Education breached commitments to keep the 2020 Leaving Certificate fair and accurate and comparable to other years’ results by not including historical school data in the calculated grade process, the High Court has heard …” (more)

[Independent, 9 December]

“The Minister for Education breached commitments to keep the 2020 Leaving Certificate fair and accurate, and comparable to other years results, in failing to include historical school data in the calculated grade process, the High Court has been told …” (more)

[Aodhan O’Faolain, Irish Times, 8 December]

“The High Court has permitted a limited cross-examination of the assistant secretary of the Department of Education during the lead challenge over the Leaving Cert calculated grades process. That action, by Freddie Sherry, a Leaving Cert student at Dublin’s Belvedere College, is due to open next Tuesday with more than 30 other cases awaiting its outcome …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 1 December]

“A draft document circulated by the director of the Leaving Cert calculated grades office referred to the ‘negative consequences’ of excluding historical school data from a calculated grades model as including ‘better performing disadvantaged schools also [being] thrown under the bus’, the High Court has heard …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 25 November]

“A memorandum considered by Cabinet before approving the exclusion of historical school data from the Leaving Cert calculated grades process cannot be disclosed on grounds of Cabinet confidentiality, the State has told the High Court …” (more)

[Mary Carolan, Irish Times, 24 November]