Dr Conor McCormick and Emeritus Professor Brice Dickson have co-authored a new book on The Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland, published by Bristol University Press.

The Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland has functioned without interruption for over a century, yet its intermediate position can obscure the importance of its judgments. Based on archival research, statistical and qualitative case analyses, court observations, and exclusive interviews with senior judges, McCormick and Dickson’s new book demonstrates the Court of Appeal’s pivotal role in securing justice, both by correcting lower court decisions and by developing the common law. It examines, in particular, how the Court has applied and developed the rule of law in a post-conflict society.

The Lady Chief Justice, who is also President of the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland, shared her reflections about the book alongside Sir Donnell Deeny, Retired Lord Justice of Appeal, at a launch event held in the Inn of Court at the Royal Courts of Justice, Belfast, on Monday 18 November.

The Lady Chief Justice has also penned a Foreword to the book, in which she writes, among other things, that “[i]t will be beneficial for lawyers, students, academics, and readers who are appearing before the Court or who are interested in how the important work of the Court has contributed to the legal and political landscape within this jurisdiction.”

The book has been published on “open access” basis, meaning it can be read and downloaded in full online: https://bristoluniversitypressdigital.com/monobook-oa/book/9781529241754/9781529241754.xml.

In addition, paperback copies of the book can be purchased for £7.50 using a 50% discount code (“BUP11”) that will remain active until the end of November 2024: https://bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/the-court-of-appeal-in-northern-ireland.