Iseult Pauline Mary O'Malley (born 30 June 1964) is an Irish judge who has served as a Judge of the

Supreme Court of Ireland , image = Coat of arms of Ireland.svg , imagesize = 120px , alt = , caption = Coat of Arms of Ireland , image2 = Four Courts, Dublin 2014-09-13.jpg , imagesize2 = , alt2 ...

since October 2015. She previously served as a Judge of the High Court from 2012 to 2015.

Early life

O'Malley was born in 1964 to Una O'Higgins O'Malley, a writer, and Eoin O'Malley, a heart surgeon. She is a granddaughter of

Kevin O'Higgins Kevin Christopher O'Higgins ( ga, Caoimhghín Críostóir Ó hUigín; 7 June 1892 – 10 July 1927) was an Irish politician who served as Vice-President of the Executive Council and Minister for Justice from 1922 to 1927, Minister for External ...

, the

Minister for Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Justi ...

who was assassinated in 1927. She has five brothers, including

Chris O'Malley Christopher Gerard O'Malley (born 9 June 1959) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the Dublin constituency from 1986 to 1989. In January 1986, he was nominated to the European Parli ...

. She was educated at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

and

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 ...

. She was the individual runner-up of the

Irish Times Debate The Irish Times National Debating Championship is a debating competition for students in higher education in Ireland. It has been run since 1960, sponsored by ''The Irish Times''. While most participants represent institutions in the Republic of ...

in 1982 and debated in the final of the

Observer Mace The John Smith Memorial Mace (known as the Observer Mace from 1954 to 1995) is an annual debating tournament ( British Parliamentary format) contested by universities in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The equivalent competition for second ...

in 1985 with David Keane.

Legal career

She was called to the

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in 1987, and became 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 jurisdictio ...

in 2007. She practised mainly in criminal law. She was Director and Chair of the

Free Legal Advice Centres Free Legal Advice Centres (FLAC) is a non-profit human rights organisation that provide pro bono publico assistance via a network of legal advice clinics throughout the Republic of Ireland. They have been involved in a number of notable law cases ...

(FLAC) from 1985 to 2012. During her time as chairperson, the organisation campaigned for the introduction of civil legal aid. She won a Person of the Year Award in 2004 for her work with FLAC. She also chaired the Refugee Agency between 1993 and 1996. She was a member of the Employment Appeals Tribunal between 1995 and 1998 and concurrently served on the Hepatitis C Compensation Tribunal. She was appointed a

Bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher ca ...

of the King's Inns in 2012.

Judicial career

She was appointed as a Judge of the High Court in 2012. She was nominated to the Supreme Court in July 2015 and was appointed by the

President of Ireland The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces. The president holds office for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms.Constitu ...

on 1 October 2015. She made the Declaration required by the Constitution of a Justice of the Supreme Court on 6 October 2015. She has delivered opinions for the court in final appeals involving criminal law, contract law, EU law, ward of court, and judicial review.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Omalley, Iseult 1964 births Living people Irish barristers Judges of the Supreme Court of Ireland Alumni of Trinity College Dublin High Court judges (Ireland) Irish women lawyers Irish women judges People from County Dublin Alumni of King's Inns