The Hon. Ms. Justice
Karen O'Connor
Judge of the High Court
Assumed office
6 December 2021
Nominated byGovernment of Ireland
Appointed byMichael D. Higgins
Judge of the Circuit Court
In office
27 November 2014 – 6 December 2021
Nominated byGovernment of Ireland
Appointed byMichael D. Higgins
Personal details
NationalityIrish
Alma mater

Karen O'Connor is an Irish judge and lawyer who has served as a Judge of the High Court since December 2021. She previously served as a Judge of the Circuit Court from 2014 to 2021. She previously practiced as a barrister specialising in criminal law.

Early life

O'Connor was educated at Trinity College Dublin and the King's Inns.[1][2]

She was called to the Bar in 1993.[3] During her career as a barrister she frequently appeared in criminal trials, often prosecuting on behalf of the Director of Public Prosecutions.[4] She acted in cases involving sexual offences, drug offences, theft, murder and assault.[5][6][7][8][9]

Judicial career

Circuit Court

O'Connor became a judge of the Circuit Court in November 2014.[10] She presided over criminal trials in the Circuit Court.[11][12] She was initially not assigned to a circuit and heard cases in Galway.[13][14] She was assigned to the Dublin Circuit between 2017 and 2021.[2][15][16]

O'Connor was the presiding judge in the criminal trials of Tom Humphries in 2017 and David Drumm in 2018.[17][18] The Drumm trial lasted for 16 weeks.[19]

High Court

The Irish government agreed to nominate her to become a judge of the High Court in November 2021.[1] She was appointed on 6 December 2021.[20]

References

  1. 1 2 Leahy, Pat. "Nominations of three new High Court judges to be sent to President". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Appointments to the High Court". www.gov.ie. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  3. ↑ "Karen O'Connor". Law Library. Archived from the original on 19 November 2007. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  4. ↑ "Businessman jailed for sex assault on girl". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  5. ↑ "Man jailed for sex assault on niece (6)". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  6. ↑ "Couple jailed over €100,000 cannabis find". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  7. ↑ "Sentence suspended for theft of eight laptops from Government". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  8. ↑ "Accused in murder case walks free". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  9. ↑ "Nurse's aid gets jail for attacking woman". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  10. ↑ "JAAB Annual Report 2014" (PDF). JAAB. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  11. ↑ Magee, Jessica; McLean, Sonya. "Man who stole nearly €1m from employer jailed for 18 months". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  12. ↑ Hayes, Isabel; Ferguson, Fiona. "PC World worker who stole €27k of Apple goods gets community service". The Irish Times.
  13. ↑ "The Judges". Courts.ie. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  14. ↑ Healy, Ann. "Mother pleads not guilty to child cruelty and neglect". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  15. ↑ "The Judges". Courts.ie. Archived from the original on 5 August 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  16. ↑ "The Judges | The Courts Service of Ireland". www.courts.ie. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  17. ↑ Ryan, Órla. "'The higher the profile and success of a member of society, the greater the fall'". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  18. ↑ Murphy, Sarah Jane. "Judge warns David Drumm jury not to carry out research on social media". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  19. ↑ Murphy, Sarah Jane. "David Drumm trial: Defence put up strenuous challenge in lengthy legal arguments". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  20. ↑ "Diary President Higgins Appoints Judges To The High Court December 2021". president.ie. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
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