Legal News ()

In the current climate of housing shortages and increasing rents, many people find themselves looking for cheaper and more convenient accommodation, particularly in city centre locations. This can take numerous forms and, for some, can last for many years. Jackie Buckley and John Deignan look at the potential pitfalls involved.

The enactment of the Workplace Relations Bill, which comes into effect on 1 October 2015, represents a welcome and substantial overhaul of the current system for the resolution of employment disputes in Ireland. Breda O’Malley outlines some of the key reforms.

In a report on the cost of medical indemnity insurance published in June this year, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children (the Committee) identified key concerns and made recommendations to the Ministers for Health and Justice, the HSE and other stakeholders.

Following a recent landmark decision in the matter of Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board, handed down by the UK Supreme Court on 11th March 2015, Alison Kelleher and Sharon McCauley highlight the key findings for healthcare professionals.

The government has now published the long awaited draft legislation intended to empower the courts to award Periodic Payments Orders (PPOs) instead of lump sums in catastrophic injury claims.

The office of ombudsman Peter Tyndall recently applied to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for an extension of its jurisdiction to encompass matters concerning clinical judgment.