Karen O'Connor (judge)

Karen O'Connor is an Irish lawyer who has been a judge of the High Court since 2021. She was a Circuit Court judge between 2014 and 2021 and was previously a barrister practising criminal law.

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

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. Leahy, Pat. "Nominations of three new High Court judges to be sent to President". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  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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