Kevin_Lynch_(judge)
Kevin Lynch (judge)
Irish judge (1927–2013)
Kevin Lynch (24 June 1927 – 31 October 2013) was an Irish judge and barrister who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 1996 to 1999 and a Judge of the High Court from 1984 to 1996. In 1984, he was the sole member of the Kerry Babies tribunal.
Kevin Lynch | |
|---|---|
| Judge of the Supreme Court | |
| In office 15 April 1996 – 15 December 1999 | |
| Nominated by | Government of Ireland |
| Appointed by | Mary Robinson |
| Judge of the High Court | |
| In office 24 January 1984 – 15 April 1996 | |
| Nominated by | Government of Ireland |
| Appointed by | Patrick Hillery |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1927-06-24)24 June 1927 Dublin, Ireland |
| Died | (aged 85) Croom, County Limerick, Ireland |
| Spouse |
Bernadette Lynch (m. 1957) |
| Children | 5 |
| Parent |
|
| Education | St Mary's College, Dublin |
| Alma mater | |
Lynch was born in Dublin in 1927.[1][2] His father, Fionán Lynch, was a member of the First Dáil and a judge of the Circuit Court.[3]
He attended St. Mary's College, Dublin and received a degree from University College Dublin.[4] He attended the King's Inns where he won the John Brooke Scholarship.[1]
He was called to the bar in 1949, and became a senior counsel in 1970.[2] His practice was centred on the Midland circuit.[1]
High Court
Lynch became a judge of the High Court in 1984.[1][5] In December 1984, he was appointed the sole member of the tribunal into the Kerry Babies case.[6] He was among three judges who sat in a divisional High Court which heard an unsuccessful challenge by Des Hanafin to result of the 1995 divorce referendum.[7] He heard the High Court hearing of Bula Ltd v Tara Mines Ltd (No 6) in 1996 which ran for 277 days.[2]
Supreme Court
Lynch was appointed to the Supreme Court of Ireland in April 1996.[8] He was delayed from first sitting on the court as the Bula case had not yet completed.[3]
He was married to Bernadette, with who he had five children.[10] He died at the age of 85 in a nursing home near Croom, County Limerick, in 2013.[10]
- Hugh Geoghegan; Harry Whelehan; James Nugent (16 December 2013). "Mr Justice Kevin Lynch: An Appreciation". The Irish Times. p. 15.
- Gleeson, Colin (31 October 2013). "Retired Supreme Court judge Kevin Lynch dies". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 27 June 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- Kennedy, Geraldine (4 May 1996). "Supreme Court faces unprecedented change". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 22 September 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- "Mr Justice Lynch retires". The Irish Times. 18 December 1999. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- "New judge sworn in". The Irish Times. 25 January 1984. p. 8.
- "Dáil Éireann debate - Tuesday, 11 Dec 1984". Oireachtas.ie. Archived from the original on 14 May 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- "Hanafin fails to win delay on divorce vote challenge". The Irish Times. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- "Supreme and High Court judges appointed". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 22 September 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- "Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 March 2008". Oireachtas.ie. Archived from the original on 8 December 2020. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- "A lovely, caring man who always got to the truth – judge's family bid farewell". Irish Independent. 5 November 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2020. Retrieved 31 March 2021.