Golden opportunity for Ireland Leading environmental lawyer Fred Logue argues that Ireland should build on the progress it has made in becoming the jurisdiction of choice for international environmental litigation in the EU and proposes the use of the Irish High Court Planning and Environment Court model as an exemplar of the Ireland for Law concept
W
hile one part of the Irish State is actively promoting Ireland as a leading global centre for international legal services another part is busy making sure some of the most cutting edge litigation in the world can never take place here. The most important litigation involving complex and dynamic regulatory frameworks is often brought by motivated individuals and expert NGOs through public law actions rather than through commercial litigation. For example, the landmark cases of Digital Rights Ireland (C-293/12) and Schrems (C-362/14 and C-311/18) were public law cases, launched in Ireland, and resulted in significant decisions from the Court of Justice which clarified important fundamental rights in relation to personal data. As I will explain below, the same dynamic is emerging in the field of environmental law with Ireland becoming a jurisdiction of choice for international litigation. However, the recent proposed reforms of judicial review which could make it prohibitively expensive to litigate, hard to have standing and reduce available remedies will almost certainly reverse five years of progress towards establishing Ireland as one of the leading European jurisdictions for environmental litigation and turning it into a backwater for this area of law. In my view this is a mistake and represents a missed opportunity to solidify and build on the progress Ireland has already made in becoming the jurisdiction of choice for international environmental litigation in the EU. The Ireland for Law initiative was kicked off in 2019 by the Minister for Justice as part of Ireland’s strategic response to Brexit. It highlights Ireland’s strengths in
14 the Parchment
key sectors such as aviation finance, funds, insurance, tech, pharma, and life sciences. Backed by senior legal and government figures, including the Attorney General and IDA Ireland, it builds on Ireland’s Commercial Court to promote Irish law and Ireland as a venue for international litigation and arbitration. Ireland for Law aims to make sure that Irish courts and Irish lawyers are involved at the leading edge of important international litigation and through that attract global business, taking advantage of high quality dispute resolution in an EU, common law jurisdiction. We saw this model in action recently with the landmark Russian aviation insurance trial taking place in the Irish High Court involving disputes over claims worth around €2.5 billion. The trial lasted 10 months and involved 12 sets of legal teams and 200 lawyers, and addressed issues arising from the stranding of aircraft in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine and the resulting international sanctions. The case involved complex questions of coverage, jurisdiction and contractual interpretation under both Irish law and the laws of the United Kingdom and five states in the US. In my practice area, the Planning and Environment Court, launched in December 2023 by Mr Justice Richard Humphreys, built on the Commercial Court model by establishing a specialised environmental court with three dedicated judges and a suite of bespoke practice rules. This Court has been a resounding success providing timely access to justice for important disputes relating to planning and development, biodiversity, climate change, energy and a vast range of other complex areas of environmental regulation. Through bespoke procedures and the accumulated experience of legal practitioners, both solicitor and