Nicholas Kearns (born 1946) is a retired Irish judge who served as President of the High Court from 2009 to 2015 and a Judge of the High Court from 1998 to 2015. He retired as President of the High Court on 19 December 2015.

Early career

Kearns was born in 1946 and educated at St Mary's College, Dublin. He attended

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

and subsequently attended the King's Inns. He also achieved a diploma in European law from UCD. He was called to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1968, the Bar of England and Wales in 1981 and became a senior counsel in March 1982. His practice was primarily focused on personal injuries law.

Judicial career

High Court

He came a judge of the High Court in 1998. At one stage, he was in charge of the competition law list. He co-founded the Association of European Competition Law Judges. He was an ad hoc judge of the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...

, serving from 2000 until 2009. He was the chairperson of the

Referendum Commission A Referendum Commission ( ga, An Coimisiún Reifrinn) is an independent statutory body in Ireland which is set up in advance of any referendum. The Referendum Act 1998 as amended by the Referendum Act 2001 provides for the establishment of the bod ...

convened for the 27th Amendment to the

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democra ...

in 2004. He has presided over the

Special Criminal Court The Special Criminal Court (SCC; ga, Cúirt Choiriúil Speisialta) is a juryless criminal court in Ireland which tries terrorism and serious organised crime cases. Legal basis Article 38 of the Constitution of Ireland empowers the Dáil to ...

, and the former Court of Criminal Appeal.

Supreme Court

He was elevated to the Supreme Court of Ireland in 2004.

President of the High Court

He became the President of the High Court in October 2009. He retired in 2015 ahead of the mandatory retirement date in order to spend more time with family.

''Doherty v. Ireland''

On 12 July 2010, the High Court granted leave to

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Pearse Doherty Pearse Daniel Doherty (born 6 July 1977) is an Irish Sinn Féin politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Donegal constituency since the 2016 general election, and previously a TD for the Donegal South-West constituency from 2010 to ...

for a

judicial review Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incompat ...

into why a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

was not being held in Donegal South-West. The seat was vacant since June 2009, following the resignation of

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

Pat "the Cope" Gallagher Pat "the Cope" Gallagher ( ir, Pádraig Ó Gallchóir; born 10 March 1948) is a former Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Leas-Cheann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 2016 to 2020 and as a Minister of State from 1987 to 1994 and from 20 ...

on his election to the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

. On 2 November 2010, the High Court ruled that there was an unreasonable delay in holding the by-election. In his ruling, Kearns described the delay as unprecedented and that the delay amounted to a breach of Doherty's constitutional rights. He declared that Section 30 (2) of the Electoral Act 1992 should be construed as requiring that a writ for a by-election be moved within a reasonable time of the vacancy arising. He further stated, However, Justice Kearns did not order the

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The governm ...

to set a date for the by-election. The Government announced on 4 November 2010, that the by-election would be held on 25 November. They also stated that they would

appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

to the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. On 26 November 2010, Doherty won the

Post-judicial career

Kearns was appointed by

Mary Mitchell O'Connor Mary Mitchell O'Connor (born 10 June 1959) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a Minister of State from 2017 to 2020 and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation from 2016 to 2017. She served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the ...

in 2017 to become the chairperson of the Personal Injuries Commission. The purpose of the commission was to review claims process in Ireland. He became the deputy chairperson of the

National Maternity Hospital, Dublin The National Maternity Hospital ( ga, An tOspidéal Náisiúnta Máithreachais), popularly known as Holles Street Hospital, is a large maternity hospital in Ireland. The hospital is located at the eastern corner of Merrion Square, at its junction ...

in 2015 and is a trustee of the

Gate Theatre The Gate Theatre is a theatre on Cavendish Row in Dublin, Ireland. It was founded in 1928. History Beginnings The Gate Theatre was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál MacLiammóir with Daisy Bannard Cogley and Gearóid Ó Lochlai ...

Personal life

He is married to Eleanor, with whom he has four sons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kearns, Nicholas Living people 1946 births People educated at St Mary's College, Dublin Alumni of University College Dublin Presidents of the High Court (Ireland) 21st-century Irish judges 20th-century Irish lawyers 20th-century Irish judges Chairpersons of the Referendum Commission Alumni of King's Inns