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Continuing to vest the judiciary with very wide discretion to determine maintenance issues on a case-by-case basis, the child maintenance system applied in Ireland is now an outlier in the common law world. However, while there are currently few judicially-developed or legislatively-established principles or guidelines to direct the exercise of this discretion – much less any formulae or tables – reform may be on the horizon. With this in mind, this article considers the legal framework for child maintenance in Ireland before drawing on recent empirical studies to highlight the challenges in practice. It places the spotlight on the mounting calls for the adoption of a more predictable and consistent formula-based approach to the quantification of child maintenance and investigates five key issues which would have to be addressed in devising any such reform.

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Prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, upwards of 40,000 people got married in Ireland annually. Given that this number has fallen significantly in 2020 and 2021, the number of weddings celebrated in 2022 and thereafter will likely increase even further. The weddings industry is a small but increasingly recognised sector of Ireland’s wider economy with Irish weddings reported to cost, on average, €25,000.1 However, notwithstanding that it is of significant importance to many people every year, Irish weddings law – located in the Civil Registration Act 2004 (as amended) – has attracted scant academic attention to date.

Law and Policy in Modern Family Finance: Property Division in the 21st Century is the fruit of an international colloquium held in New Zealand in December 2016. The colloquium was prompted by the November 2015 referral of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 to the New Zealand Law Commission for a comprehensive review of the prevailing property sharing regime applied. The colloquium was convened to consider various options for reform and the papers delivered at it were subsequently revised for publication in this latest contribution to the market.

What is the Family of Law? The Influence of the Nuclear Family by Dr Alan Brown, University of Glasgow, was published by Hart Publishing in 2019. At its core, the book presents a theoretical analysis of the definition and construction of ‘family’. In particular, it explores the continuing normative importance of the traditional nuclear family in the legal regulation of conjugal relationships and parent/child relationships in England and Scotland. The book also examines the possibilities offered by alternative models of ‘family’ before arguing for a radical re-imagining of the underlying approach to the legal understanding of the term.

Assisted Human Reproduction Bill 2017. Seeking to provide a much needed legal framework for surrogacy in Ireland, various surrogacy-related aspects of the General Scheme have attracted considerable media attention and academic comment to date.1 Other equally important elements of the developing Bill – unrelated to the core issue of surrogacy – have received much less attention, however. Of particular note, proposals included in the General Scheme of the 2017 Bill which seek to expressly permit and regulate posthumous assisted reproduction in Ireland have attracted little consideration in either academic or public discourse.

Nel maggio del 2015 l’attenzione dei media di tutto il mondo era concentrata sull’Irlanda: si era appena tenuto il Referendum sull’uguaglianza matrimoniale, ed era passato con il 62.07% dei voti. Il risultante Trentaquattresimo emendamento della Costituzione, che ora permette che il matrimonio sia contratto semplicemente da due persone, senza distinguere se siano dello stesso sesso, è stato interpretato in tutto il mondo occidentale come una chiara indicazione di come la società irlandese sia diventata progressista e liberale. Il New York Times ha dichiarato che la vittoria ha posto l’Irlanda in prima linea nel cambiamento sociale1. Nel mondo, molte altre agenzie di stampa hanno vantato titoli simili 2. .

peer-reviewed The appropriateness or otherwise of the law governing entry into marriage in England and Wales has come under ever increasing scrutiny in recent times. Much of this focus arises, in particular, from concerns over the apparent proliferation of unrecognised – so-called ‘nikah-only’ – Muslim marriages in the jurisdiction. Reflecting the conclusions of the Law Commission for England and Wales (see Getting Married [2015]), Probert notes, ‘[i]t is widely agreed that the current law of marriage is outdated, overly complex, unfair, and ineffective’ (‘Criminalising non-compliance with marriage formalities’ [2018] 48 Fam Law 702). The need for urgent law reform adopting a more modern and streamlined approach to the regulation of marriage appears undeniable ACCEPTED peer-reviewed

peer-reviewed Despite the enormous social changes which have taken place in Ireland in recent decades, marriage remains a popular institution in the jurisdiction. According to the Central Statistics Office of Ireland, over 22,000 marriages were registered in 2017.1 As the Supreme Court recently observed: ‘Despite the factual reality that many couples do not choose to marry, marriage remains a central feature of Irish life for the majority.’2 Further emphasising its importance in Ireland, the court noted that the constitutional pledge to guard the institution of marriage with ‘special care’ as carried in Article 41.3.1°, ‘remains in place and must be accorded full respect’. ACCEPTED peer-reviewed

peer-reviewed The legal protections that are afforded – or, in many cases, are not afforded – to religious minorities right across the world are attracting increased attention. Although concern for the plight of religious minorities is certainly not confined to Western democracies, nor is it invariably related to the rapidly growing Muslim communities in such countries, migration patterns across, in particular, the Twentieth Century, from Muslim majority countries to Western, usually Christian majority, countries has in no small way contributed to placing the spotlight on these protections. This chapter highlights Ireland’s specific relationship with migration and highlights the importance of understanding how new minority, especially non-Christian, religions fit into the social and legal context in Ireland ACCEPTED

peer-reviewed According to the Census 2016, the demand for rented accommodation in Ireland has continued its upward trend, with 497,111 households renting, an increase of 4.7 per cent on 2011.1 As a result, renting is the tenure status for almost 30 per cent of all occupied dwellings in the State. Significantly, renting from a local authority showed the largest increase, up 11 per cent from 129,033 in 2011 to 143,178 in 2016.2 However, a serious issue has arisen in relation to the standard of rental accommodation, with particular attention being focused on local authority housing. Having regard to the Census 2006, Kenna noted “almost 20% of local authority housing was without central heating, a higher proportion than any other tenure”.3 Yet, more than a decade later, the provision of substandard local authority housing appears to persist, with media outlets regularly reporting on cases of significant concern.4 In this context, it is worthwhile to reconsider the underlying legal obligations placed on local authorities, specifically, to ensure local authority housing meets certain minimum standards.5 These obligations are derived from a range of sources and have developed in a very piecemeal fashion over almost a century. This article seeks to highlight some of these sources, placing particular emphasis on recent regulatory developments in the area, notably the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2017 ACCEPTED peer-reviewed

peer-reviewed As Baroness Cox’s Arbitration and Media Services (Equality) Bill was recently given a second reading in the House of Lords, Sharia law, and, in particular, the role of Sharia councils, have once again been thrust into the spotlight. The Bill which was first introduced into the House of Lords as a Private Member’s Bill in 2011 (timing out prior to reaching committee stage) and subsequently re-introduced in 2013, is now on its third, well-documented, attempted passage through the House. The timing of the Bill on this occasion appears to coincide with a growing political hostility towards Sharia law or, indeed, any ‘cultural practices that run directly counter to [British values]’ (David Cameron, Extremism Speech, 15th July 2015). In this environment, it has been suggested that it may now be ‘third time lucky’ for Baroness Cox.

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non-peer-reviewed December 22nd marks the 50th anniversary of the enactment of the Succession Act 1965 – the primary legislation governing inheritance in Ireland. When introduced, the 1965 Act was said to have brought about a ‘revolutionary change’ to Irish succession law. Key provisions of the Act sought to protect surviving spouses against disinheritance and introduced a new scheme for the distribution of an intestate estate. However, although these provisions have received little attention from Irish law reformers to date, it is increasingly clear that Ireland lags well behind other jurisdictions in its protection of surviving spouses, especially in cases of intestacy.

non-peer-reviewed Last week, the Irish Aviation Authority published the first draft of its proposed Small Unmanned Aircraft (Drones) and Rocket Order. The legislation, if adopted, will apply to drones being used in the State and seeks to replace legislation from 2000 which currently governs the technology. The introduction of such legislation would undoubtedly represent a step in the right direction, clarifying the need for training in certain circumstances and highlighting the need for safety.

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peer-reviewed The ‘Scholarship of Teaching for Transitions’ research project aimed to provide a snapshot of existing national and international scholarship on teaching for transitions, with a particular emphasis on pedagogies for transitions. The research concentrated on the student’s journey as it relates to Higher Education, i.e. transitions in, through and out of third level.

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peer-reviewed This article reviews Rob George's, 'Ideas and Debates in Family Law . ACCEPTED peer-reviewed

peer-reviewed Throughout the world the home is considered an asset of major importance in most people s lives. In Ireland, in particular, the family home is the subject of important legislative safeguards and arguably the most robust legislative protection for the Irish family home arises under the Irish succession law regime. However, it is argued that the provisions of the Succession Act 1965 which seek to protect surviving, non-owning, spouses in the family home following the death of the owner spouse ought to be reviewed to ensure their continued effectiveness. This article considers the practical effect of the provisions governing the appropriation of the family home in Ireland pursuant to the Succession Act 1965. The difficulties which arise in appropriating a family home which is located on agricultural land are highlighted. The article investigates how these shortcomings could be effectively resolved by legislative reform. Among its proposals for reform, it argues that the introduction of a statutory right of residence in certain circumstances would ameliorate the situation for vulnerable surviving spouses. ACCEPTED peer-reviewed

peer-reviewed This doctoral thesis analyses the legal protection afforded to non-owning spouses in Ireland in relation to the family home through the different stages of a marital relationship ??? inter vivos, on death and on divorce. Although the property rights of spouses continue to be held on the basis of title and are not automatically modified by marriage, some modifications to the separate property regime have taken place through the intervention of equity and the legislature which mitigate the harshness associated with it, in particular, in relation to the ownership, control and occupation of the family home. This thesis questions whether these interventions are sufficient or whether further protection is needed for non-owning spouses in relation to this important asset. To this end, the thesis considers what lessons may be learned from the law of British Columbia, Canada on this issue. What emerges is that, in certain circumstances, considerable protection is currently afforded by Irish law to non-owning spouses vis-??-vis the family home. Areas of particular strength include the restrictions against the unilateral disposition of the family home imposed by the Family Home Protection Act 1976 and the provision of the legal right share and the right to appropriate the family home in satisfaction of such a share by the Succession Act 1965. By contrast, the protection afforded by the law in British Columbia at these points in a relationship is much weaker. On the other hand, the British Columbian approach to spousal provision on intestacy appears more likely to secure the family home for the benefit of the non-owning spouse than the Irish approach and British Columbia also confers non-owning spouses with much more substantial protection on marital breakdown than is afforded pursuant to the Irish Family Law Acts. In these latter areas, in particular, the author argues that important lessons can be learned from the experiences of this other jurisdiction to shape the future of Irish law. On this basis, this thesis presents practical and viable methods of strengthening the protections which currently exist inter vivos and on death, as well as formulating an alternative regime based on a deferred community of property akin to that applied in British Columbia to deal with matrimonial property division on marital breakdown. When combined, the implementation of these proposals for reform in Ireland would ensure much more comprehensive protection for the family home and a system of matrimonial property law which is more theoretically consistent in its application throughout a marital relationship.

peer-reviewed Ireland is unusual in a succession law context as despite being a common law jurisdiction Irish succession law applies a comprehensive system of forced heirship for spouses under the Succession Act 1965. However, despite the strengths inherent in such a regime, shortcomings have emerged. This paper considers the position of the surviving spouse who has been disinherited and the challenges they face in Ireland in the application of the legal right share towards the appropriation of the family home. In light of the difficulties identified, the paper proposes a new and alternative approach based on the provision of a preferential share representing a fixed monetary sum, subject to limitations. The proposal is then tested from both a theoretical and practical perspective. This paper concludes that the implementation of such a proposal, as an alternative to the legal right share, would eradicate the most striking weaknesses inherent in the current regime and should be afforded serious consideration. ACCEPTED peer-reviewed