Convicted judge Perrin offers her resignation

A judge found guilty of attempting to deceive an elderly friend out of half his estate is to resign.

Heather Perrin will be sentenced tomorrow, and could face up to five years in jail, after being convicted of deception by a jury at the Circuit Criminal Court.

She is the first member of the judiciary in the history of the State to be convicted of a serious crime.

The Courts Service has confirmed Perrin, aged 60, of Lambay Court, Malahide, Co Dublin, will quit her post.

“Judge Heather Perrin will proffer her immediate resignation from the district court bench, to President Michael D Higgins, via the Department of an Taoiseach,” it said.

Justice Minister Alan Shatter confirmed that, at 7.30pm last night, Perrin conveyed her resignation to Taoiseach Enda Kenny for onward transmission to the President and that this was in accordance with the requirements of section 6 (2) of the Courts (Establishment and Constitution) Act 1961.

Perrin was found guilty after a seven-day trial which heard she tricked her victim into bequeathing half his estate, worth about €1m, to her two children. Thomas Davis, who is in his 80s, and his wife, Ada, had been friends of Perrin for years.

In evidence, Mr Davis revealed he gave instructions to the former solicitor about a new will in Jan 2009 to bequeath €2,000 each to various churches and €2,000 each to Perrin’s children Adam and Sybil.

The rest of the estate was to be divided up between his nieces.

However, the will drafted by Perrin divided the estate between Mr Davis’s nieces and her own children.

Mr Davis said his will was not read over to him before he signed it and that a copy he received contained his original instructions.

The false will was exposed after O’Hanrahan Quaney, the firm that took over Perrin’s business when she was appointed to the judiciary, discovered it in her papers.