UCC appoints top criminal judge to its faculty of law
The appointment will be seen as a major coup for UCC as Mr Justice Carney is widely regarded as a leading expert in Irish criminal law with forthright views on sentencing and the legal process as well as being one of the most respected members of the judiciary, despite his involvement in the occasional legal controversy.
A High Court judge since 1999, Mr Justice Carney has spent most of his time on the bench presiding over many of the most high-profile murder and rape trials at the Central Criminal Court, including the prosecution of Midleton student, Wayne O’Donoghue for the unlawful killing of Robert Holohan earlier this year.
The judge is also credited with overseeing a reduction in the length of time it takes for important criminal cases to come to trial with the average waiting time now at a historically low period of just four months.
Mr Justice Carney has also been responsible for attempts to improve the efficiency of the Central Criminal Court by staging important trials in courthouses around the country. In the past three years, he has presided at historic murder and rape trials in Limerick, Ennis, Sligo, Castlebar, Cork and Tralee.
His duties at UCC will include delivering guest lectures and seminars on the subject of criminal law and evidence as well as involvement in workshops at the university. Mr Justice Carney will also facilitate access for UCC law students to criminal trials in the Central Criminal Court including in camera (private) matters.
After qualifying as a barrister in 1966, he operated a broad legal practice covering crime, personal injuries and constitutional law.
Mr Justice Carney, 63, who studied at Gonzaga College and King’s Inns is married to Dr Marjorie Young, a former consultant dermatologist and now member of the Bar. The couple, who have four adult children, live in Dublin.
His appointment as adjunct professor at UCC will run until April 2009.
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