Patrick James Connolly (25 May 1927 – 7 January 2016) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

who served as

Attorney General of Ireland The Attorney General of Ireland ( ga, An tArd-Aighne) is a constitutional officer who is the legal adviser to the Government and is therefore the chief law officer of the State. The attorney general is not a member of the Government but does pa ...

from March 1982 to August 1982.

Early life and career

Connolly was born on 25 May 1927, the elder of the two sons of a headmaster and a teacher in

Fingal Fingal ( ; ) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is one of three successor counties to County Dublin, which was disestablished for administrative purposes in 1994. ...

, in Dublin. He was educated at St Joseph's College,

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 the

King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environment ...

, after which he was called to the Bar in 1949. His practice, which focused on

personal injury Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to the body, mind or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. In common law jurisdictions the term is most commonly used to refer to a type of tort lawsuit in which the person bringing the suit (t ...

cases, was widely successful. On 9 March 1982,

Charles Haughey Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...

named him as

MacArthur Scandal

Connolly resigned on 17 August 1982 after

Malcolm MacArthur The phrase grotesque, unbelievable, bizarre and unprecedented was paraphrased from a comment by then Taoiseach Charles Haughey, while describing a strange series of incidents in the summer of 1982 that led to a double-murderer, Malcolm MacArthu ...

, who had been a house-guest of Connolly's, was arrested for murder. MacArthur, the domestic partner of Connolly's friend

Brenda Little Brenda is a feminine given name in the English language. Origin The overall accepted origin for the female name Brenda is the Old Nordic male name ''Brandr'' meaning both ''torch'' and ''sword'': evidently the male name Brandr took root in areas ...

, had committed a horrific double murder in the midst of a botched carjacking and robbery in 1982. Though Connolly was not implicated in the murder or in knowingly harbouring the assassin, he was forced to resign at midnight the night of MacArthur's arrest and never again served in government.

Later life and death

Connolly returned to practice at the Irish bar and to work as a

senior counsel The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel (post-nominal letters: SC) is given to a senior lawyer in some countries that were formerly part of the British Empire. "Senior Counsel" is used in current or former Commonwealth countries or jurisdicti ...

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. Connolly died aged 88 on 7 January 2016. Though he never married, he had a very close relationship with his extended family, including his nephew and two nieces who spoke at his

funeral Mass A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

. He was buried in

Deansgrange Cemetery Deans Grange Cemetery (; also spelled ''Deansgrange'') is situated in the suburban area of Deansgrange in the Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown part of the former County Dublin, Ireland. Since it first opened in 1865, over 150,000 people have been burie ...

References

Attorneys General of Ireland 2016 deaths Irish barristers Irish Senior Counsel People from Dalkey 1927 births Alumni of King's Inns People educated at Garbally College {{Ireland-law-bio-stub