News & Events

2 October 2024
In a new judgment of Twomey J. delivered on 30 October 2024, in the case of Ulster Bank, Paul McCann and Patrick Dillon -v- Brian McDonagh, Kenneth McDonagh and Maurice McDonagh (No.3), he revisits an issue he has already provided commentary on - the problem created by the inability to seek security for costs against individual plaintiffs.

10 May 2024
In a recent decision, Twomey J explores the challenges faced by a successful defendant in proceedings taken by an insufficiently resourced individual plaintiff.

19 April 2024
From the Paris Agreement to Corporate Accountability - how international treaties shape climate action and the potential legal ramifications for companies and directors who fail to meet emissions targets.

17 April 2024
The High Court has refused an application to strike out proceedings brought by a property developer against serial objectors to the developer’s planning applications and permissions. Seeking to restrain a party from making applications in an administrative process is neither unprecedented nor impermissible.

16 April 2024
The First Homes Scheme (FHS) was set up in July 2022, by the government, to help alleviate the significant affordability and financing issues experienced by first time buyers and others looking to acquire newly constructed homes. The Scheme is an “affordable housing scheme” aimed at first-time buyers and ‘fresh start’ applicants. As part of this initiative the government and participating lenders provide up to 30% of the purchase price of a new home in exchange for an equity stake in the home; with the option for purchasers to buy back this stake at a time in the future.

27 March 2024
The Sale of Tickets (Cultural, Entertainment, Recreational and Sporting Events) Act 2021 (the ‘Act’) , introduced on 31 July 2021, has been reshaping ticket sales dynamics while promoting fairer access to tickets for cultural, entertainment, recreational and sporting events.

27 March 2024
Following an an extensive review of the Planning and Development Act 2000 by the Attorney General, the Planning and Development Bill 2023 (the “Bill”) was approved by Cabinet for consideration of the Houses of the Oireachtas in October 2023.

28 February 2024
Discover a recent High Court case involving Pepper Finance Corporation (Ireland) DAC's application under the Succession Act 1965. This application seeks to appoint a solicitor to enforce security and recover monies owed on expired loan facilities in the estate of a deceased Borrower. However, a critical legal issue arises due to the Borrower's passing over two years ago.

27 February 2024
Discover the case of Bank of Ireland Mortgage Bank U.C. v Hade [2023] IECA 293, stemming from a landmark High Court judgment in 2022. The judgment awarded exemplary damages against a receiver for selling properties without obtaining a court order under the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2009. Now, the receiver's appeal in 2023 grapples with Sections 97 and 100 of the 2009 Act, central to managing the enforcement of mortgages post-December 1, 2009.

12 February 2024
Under the Workplace Relations Act (Fixed Payment Notice) Regulations 2023 (the ‘Regulations’) new ‘on the spot fines’ can be imposed on employers by a Workplace Relations Commission (‘WRC’) inspector.

6 December 2023
The Screening of Third Country Transactions Act 2023 (the ‘Act’) was signed into law on 31 October 2023 and is expected to come into effect in the second quarter of 2024. The Act will ensure Ireland meets its obligations under Regulation (EU) 2019/452 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 March 2019.

14 July 2023
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Kyle Nolan as a Partner in our Commercial Litigation Department. Prior to joining AMOSS, Kyle worked for 10 years in the litigation practice of a large international law firm based in Dublin. Kyle's experience includes advising domestic, foreign and multinational clients on complex and high-value commercial disputes across a broad range of areas including banking, financial services, professional negligence, regulatory investigations and public procurement.

26 May 2023
With new EU content regulations coming in, the world’s tech giants are facing greater responsibility to clamp down on illegal and harmful content and an amplified duty to give more protection and choice to users. The rules will require tech companies to conduct risk management; independent external auditing; share data with authorities and researchers; and adopt a code of conduct, by as early as 25 August 2023.

12 May 2023
On the 28th of March this year, interim Minister for Justice, Simon Harris T.D., published the General Scheme of the Defamation (Amendment) Bill[1] stating that he intends on having a full Bill before the Oireachtas by the end of this year. The Bill aims to address the areas of concern highlighted in last year’s report. The main aim of this report was to ensure the right to freedom of expression was balanced with the right to protection of a person’s good name.

4 July 2022
With effect from 4 July 2022 AMOSS LLP is authorised by the Legal Services Regulatory Authority of Ireland to operate as, and is operating as, a limited liability partnership.

15 June 2022
On the 2 June 2022, Mr Justice Charles Meenan of the High Court delivered a judgment dismissing challenges to the legal basis of the Personal Injury Guidelines (the Guidelines), which were drawn up pursuant to the Judicial Council Act 2019 (the Act).

6 May 2022
Superior Court Rules change in respect of Lodgements and/or Tenders may result in earlier settlements of Personal Injury claims if the spirit of disclosure rules are embraced by both sides in the litigation process. However, neither side nor the public at large will benefit from this common-sense change if the exchange of reports continues to be tactically delayed.

7 April 2022
The Court of Appeal has, in a joint judgment of Mr. Justice Collins and Mr. Justice Murray (with which Ms. Justice Pilkington agreed) delivered on 6 April 2022 (“the Judgement”), provided significant clarity on the application of the Civil Liability Act, 1961 (“the CLA”) as regards claims for the recovery of debt and that of concurrent wrongdoers.

31 March 2022
The proposed legislation will provide for gender quotas at boardroom level and requires boards of Corporate Bodies to comprise a minimum of 33% of each gender within a year of the date of commencement of the legislation, and a minimum of 40% of each gender within three years of the date of commencement of the legislation.

9 December 2021
Creditors must act quickly and comply with section 549 of the Companies Act, 2014 if they wish to pursue a guarantor after an examinership.

6 December 2021
Judgment was recently handed down by Mr. Justice O’Moore in a case brought by Foot Locker Retail Ireland Limited (“Foot Locker”) seeking declarations regarding its obligation to pay rent during the period of forced closure during the Covid-19 pandemic.

1 December 2021
Despite the apparent dedicated effort of Irish legislation, a new study shows that Ireland is the sixth- least cybersecure nation in Europe. This result comes as Ireland suffered the most debilitating, cyber-attack in the history of the State when the HSE infrastructure was severely compromised by a malicious ransomware virus in May 2021.

12 November 2021
The European Union (Anti-Money Laundering: Beneficial Ownership of Trusts) Regulations 2021 (the ‘Regulations’) requires trustees of express trusts to file beneficial ownership information in a newly created Central Register of Beneficial Ownership of Trusts (the ‘CRBOT’).

31 March 2021
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) is an independent, statutory body which was established on 1 October 2015 under the Workplace Relations Act 2015. The WRC provides mediation, conciliation, adjudication, and advisory services in respect of employment related complaints and/or disputes as well as also carrying out workplace inspections to examine and determine an organisation’s compliance with Employment Legislation.

25 March 2021
In an effort to reduce premiums for consumers, the Judicial Council issued new Personal Injuries Guidelines (‘the Guidelines’) which govern pay-outs of general damages in personal injury cases. The Guidelines are intended to replace the Book of Quantum.

23 March 2021
On 5 February 2021, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’ Brien, published the Land Development Agency Bill 2021. Under this Bill, the main goal of the Land Development Agency will be to regulate, develop and regenerate public land for the delivery of housing to address deficiencies in the housing market.

25 February 2021
AMOSS Solicitors is one of the signatories of the Law Society Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Charter. By signing the GEDI Charter, AMOSS is committed to treat all individuals and groups of individuals fairly and equally and no less favourably, specific to their needs, in areas of gender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, religion, age, race, class, disability or membership of the Traveller Community.

24 August 2020
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, 1 August 2020 saw the signing into law of the Companies (Miscellaneous Provisions) (COVID-19) Act 2020 (the ‘Act’). The Act seeks to address certain company law issues that have arisen in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic response measures.

30 July 2020
The current challenges faced by businesses reinforce the necessity for directors to have regard to their legal duties and responsibilities when managing the affairs of a company, together with the consequences they may face should they be found to be in breach of such duties.

15 May 2020
The COVID-19 restrictions has put the spotlight on the use of electronic signatures for the execution of documents but a number of factors need to be considered in advance of their use.

8 May 2020
A recent court case where a Dublin furniture business sought to apply the emergency ban on evictions to commercial tenancies is examined in context of the wider impact of the health crisis on business tenancies.

5 May 2020
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Minister Eoghan Murphy has reduced the administration requirements for State authorities around the Building Control Regulations while maintaining their responsibilities.

12 November 2019
In a recent case involving a company that owned and operated a nursing home (Melbourne Health Care Limited), the Examiner was unable to formulate proposals for a Scheme of Arrangement within the 100 days allowed to do so, but a consensual sale may result.

26 September 2019
The Residential Tenancies Act strengthens the position of tenants in relation to Rent Pressure Zones and Notice Periods, and authorises the RTB to investigate landlords and impose fines.

11 September 2019
Increase in rate of levy is intended to incentivise landowners to develop lands for housing.

6 September 2019
The Land and Conveyancing Law Reform (Amendment) Act 2019 builds upon the protections given to borrowers under the Personal Insolvency legislation

26 August 2019
Applying to remove a caution registered against a folio

13 August 2019
Low speed impact claims fall into the category of opportunistic so the Plaintiff’s credibility is key.

17 July 2019
The appointment of an independent Planning Regulator with oversight of the planning system will have a significant impact on the future of planning in Ireland.

9 July 2019
The routes of enforcement under a mortgage can face a number of unique and difficult challenges.

2 July 2019
The Residential Tenancies Act, 2004 was amended on 4 June 2019 to introduce “Remedial Notices” along with changes to the notice periods applicable to terminate a tenancy.

21 June 2019
The European Union (Anti-Money Laundering: Beneficial Ownership of Corporate Entities) Regulations 2019 provides for the creation of the Central Register with which a relevant entity must file its beneficial ownership information.

20 June 2019
It was announced by The Courts Service on 19 June 2019 that several changes to the standard form front page of a Plenary Summons and a Summary Summons would immediately come into effect.

19 June 2019
The 2019 Order will come into effect from 1 October and applies to workers within the general Construction Sector employed as Craftpersons, Construction Operatives and Apprentices

12 June 2019
AMOSS acted for M&P Silva Limited (in Liquidation) in successfully opposing the making of a conditional garnishee order absolute.

29 May 2019
There has been much media coverage on the personal injuries claim brought by a politician against an hotel arising from her alleged fall off a swing on the premises. Some of the justifications offered by her warrant comment.

25 April 2019
Walsh v Walsh, Archbold and Promontoria (Aran) Limited highlights the dim view that the Courts take in respect of attempts to frustrate the legitimate enforcement of security by a lender.

28 February 2019
The Employment Investment Incentive Scheme (the ‘Scheme’), a tax incentive scheme for investors in Irish companies, was introduced in December 2011 replacing the then existing and popular Business Expansion Scheme.

26 February 2019
The ASAI Code of Standards for Advertising and Marketing Communications 7th Edition (the ‘Code’), introduced on 1 March 2016, applies to all marketing communications, including the more traditional methods of advertising and online advertisements, with limited exception.

13 February 2019
Section 17(5) of the Courts Act, 1981 (as amended) provides that, where damages awarded to a plaintiff fall within the jurisdiction of a lower court, the Judge may order the plaintiff to pay the defendant the difference between the actual costs incurred by the defendant and those that would have been incurred had the proceedings been commenced and determined in the appropriate court.

1 February 2019
This Employment (Miscellaneous) Provisions Act 2018 (the ‘Act’) was enacted on the 25 December 2018 and is due to commence no later than March 2019.  One of the primary aims of this legislation is to provide security and certainty for employees and thereby assist their ability to access credit facilities.

1 February 2019
Employers owe employees a common law duty to take reasonable care for their safety.

30 January 2019
The President of the High Court, Mr. Justice Peter Kelly signed a practice direction last Wednesday removing all debt cases from the Master of the High Court. As a result, from 4 February 2019 all cases seeking Judgment for in excess of €75,000, will be dealt with by a Judge of the High Court.

21 January 2019
The Bill aims to provide more protection for tenants and if enacted in it’s current form will substantially increase the obligations of landlord of residential properties.

9 January 2019
When selling or purchasing real estate, the Law Society of Ireland endorsed Contract of Sale (the “Contract”) is invariably used by the parties to govern the terms of the agreement reached. 

5 January 2019
The High Court has recently granted an interlocutory injunction restraining receivers and the appointing lender from dealing with the assets of a guarantor who claims that, at the time of providing the guarantee and supporting mortgage to the original lender, she was under duress from her son to do so.

18 December 2018
The Personal Injuries Commission, chaired by Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, former President of the High Court, published its second and final report in July 2018.

24 August 2018
Prior to the Companies Act 2014 (‘Companies Act’)  there were certain registration requirements for foreign companies that either had established a ‘branch’ or had ‘a place of business’ in the State.

14 August 2018
The Courts have held in a number of recent decisions that occupiers are entitled to presume that visitors to their property will take reasonable care for their own safety, as Section 3 of the Occupiers Liability Act, 1995 envisages. 

24 July 2018
Two brothers (the “Borrowers”) tried unsuccessfully to rely on the doctrine of consolidation to defeat a cross-security arrangement with AIB Mortgage Bank (the “Bank”).

22 January 2018
Amid the controversy surrounding the implementation of the new 6% rate of stamp duty on commercial property, there was precious little discussion about a related measure announced in last year’s Budget.

19 September 2017
In the recent High Court case of Allied Irish Banks plc v Marino Motor Works Limited, Ms. Justice Úna Ní Raifeartaigh refused Allied Irish Banks’s application for summary judgment and sent the matter forward to plenary hearing as neither the court, nor Marino Motor Works, could verify the Allied Irish Banks’s interest claim.

18 September 2017
Traditionally, the Rules of the Superior Courts did not permit parties to amend or deliver pleadings during the Long Vacation, being the months of August and September each year.

14 September 2017
Section 115A of the Personal Insolvency Acts (the “Acts”) requires that any appeal under the Acts is to be brought by the debtor’s Personal Insolvency Practitioner (the “PIP”).

18 September 2017
The European Court of Human Rights has held that the monitoring of an employee’s electronic communications is a violation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Article 8 enshrines the right to respect for private life and correspondence.

31 August 2017
There has been a significant increase in the incidence of lay litigants in civil cases with a number of “professional” non-lawyers assisting the lay litigants with the preparation and presentation of their cases to the Courts. In many instances these non-lawyers have sought to argue and advocate the lay litigants’ cases for them, saying that they are a “McKenzie Friend” of the lay litigant.  

23 August 2017
In recent times, the taxation of costs whereby the amount of legal costs payable was independently determined, has been hampered by significant delays. As a result solicitors and barristers often did not get paid until long after a matter had concluded.

27 July 2017
The Companies (Accounting) Act 2017 (the ‘Act’) provides welcome clarity on the position of crystallised floating charge holders in relation to their priority over preferential creditors.

26 June 2017
The Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Act, 2016 (‘the Act’) came into force on 23 December 2016. The Act provides new protections for residential tenants and amends the planning code by introducing a fast-track planning procedure for “Strategic Housing Developments’.

19 June 2017
The Help to Buy Incentive (“the Scheme”) was introduced in October 2016 as part of the Finance Act, 2016 to assist first time buyers in pulling together their deposit to purchase or build a new house or apartment.

13 June 2017
The 10 most notable changes introduced by the 2017 Companies (Accounting) Act that primarily relate to preparation, content and form of financial statements and filing requirements.

12 June 2017
A recent High Court decision has caused uncertainty as to whether lenders can appoint receivers over secured Land Registry property following a transfer of the charge and until such time as the transfer has registered in the Land Registry.

6 June 2017
The 4th Anti Money Laundering Directive (EU 2015/849) (the ‘Directive’) (replacing the 3rd Anti Money Laundering Directive (2005/60/EC)) being transposed into Irish law will no doubt cause privacy concerns for individuals who are the beneficial owner, but not registered as the legal holder, of shares in Irish companies.

18 May 2017
Order 26, rule 4 of the Rules of the Superior Courts provides that the High Court may stay proceedings if they are subsequent to previous proceedings for the same or substantially the same cause of action and the costs due by the Plaintiff in the previous proceedings have not been paid.

18 May 2017
Do you own a vacant property? Is it in an area in need of housing? If so you may be subject to a charge of 3% of the market value of your property very soon.

16 May 2017
In 2013 the Companies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act was enacted and provided for small companies to apply for examinership in the Circuit Court as well as the High Court. The intention of this Act was to reduce the cost of seeking examinership protection, albeit that the work required to be done by the parties involved remained exactly the same as in the High Court. In the following year, only 6 companies availed of examinership through the Circuit Court and the level of Circuit Court examinerships has remained low.

6 March 2017
In two Supreme Court judgments both delivered on 2 December 2014, Noreside Construction Limited -v- Irish Asphalt Limited [2014] IESC 68 and James Elliott Construction Limited -v- Irish Asphalt Limited [2014] IESC 74, the Court rejected Irish Ashphalt Limited’s claims, made in a bid to limit its liability for defective goods supplied, that the terms and conditions on its delivery dockets were incorporated into its contracts for supply.

21 February 2017
A policy statement issued by the Central Bank of Ireland on 31 January 2017 means that some small investment firms and credit institutions supervised directly by the CBI may no longer need to pay a proportion of variable remuneration in instruments or defer the payment of variable remuneration as required under Directive 2013/36.

21 February 2017
The Central Bank has published a report on the outcome of its inspection of the implementation of the Fitness & Probity Regime by credit unions.

16 February 2017
The European Union (Anti-Money Laundering: Beneficial Ownership of Corporate Entities) Regulations 2016 (S.I No. 560 of 2016) (the ‘Regulations’) impose new obligations on Irish companies and other incorporated bodies (such as ICAVs, listed UCITs and most AIF investment companies) to take immediate measures to compile a ‘beneficial ownership register’. The Regulations are the latest measure introduced to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

2 February 2017
The Employment Appeals Tribunal recently determined in the case of Reddy & Reddy v Hyper Trust Limited (EAT Determination of 23 January 2017) that the former directors of a company were not employees for the purposes of the Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977 – 2007 and the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts, 1973 – 2005.

25 January 2017
In the Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) claim of Richard Carron v Fastcom Broadband Limited (UD1515/2013), (being a claim of unfair dismissal) the EAT was asked to determine, as a preliminary issue, whether communications between the Respondent and its non-lawyer advisors were privileged legal advices. The EAT determined that advice provided by a non-lawyer prior to the date of the claimant’s claim was filed with the Workplace Relations Services (WRS) are not so privileged.

14 December 2016
AMOSS is pleased to announce that it has joined Interlaw, an elite global network of law firms.

8 November 2016
While the introduction of improved rights for tenants is to be welcomed, the legislation has, at the same time, resulted in increased costs, burdens and responsibilities for landlords.

21 October 2016
On 5 April 2016 a new statutory instrument, SI 255 of 2016 was signed to take effect from 1 October 2016. The New Rules are intended to deal with all Chancery and Non-Jury actions and certain other designated proceedings.

14 October 2016
A number of measures introduced are likely to impact the Irish property market.

29 July 2016
The Court of Appeal has ruled[1] that the Circuit Court had no jurisdiction to grant orders for possession of 6 residential investment properties as they were “not rateable” under s. 15 of the Valuation Act 2001 and not subject to the exceptions contained in that Act or the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act, 2009 and 2013.

27 July 2016
In a recent High Court Judgment, the Court found that Allied Irish Banks Plc was entitled to adjudication on foot of a Petition for Bankruptcy against two Debtors, who raised a defence of promissory estoppel arising from their claim that the Bank had agreed that their family home and farm would not be pursued in enforcing the outstanding debt owed to the Bank.

9 June 2016
Fair investigative procedure should be set in place and followed by all employers no matter how large or small and investigations carried out by personnel who are trained specifically to handle employee complaints.

27 March 2016
An analysis of the Central Bank (Variable Rate Mortgages) Bill 2016

27 May 2016
An examination of the decision in Globe Motors Inc. v TRW Lucas Verity Electric Steering Limited and Another together with an analysis of its potential effect on commercial contracts in this jurisdiction

8 April 2016
Regulation (EU) No 2015/2424 entered into force on 23 March 2016 (the “Amending Regulation”).

28 January 2016
AMOSS Solicitors, in conjunction with the UCD Sutherland School of Law is pleased to announce the establishment of the AMOSS Scholarship in Law.

3 December 2015
On 24 November 2015 the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the outcome of its 2015 EU-wide Transparency Exercise.

17 September 2015
The European Banking Authority (EBA) has recently published its final guidelines on passport notifications for mortgage credit intermediaries in support of the transposition of the Mortgage Credit Directive (MCD). The Guidelines will ensure that information about credit intermediaries carrying out business in more than one Member State is exchanged consistently between national authorities.

13 August 2015
In what has quickly become known as the Belgard Motors Judgment, the Supreme Court has recently unanimously held that a floating charge which crystallised by notice in advance of the commencement of a liquidation ranks in priority to the claims of preferential creditors.

27 February 2015
The Consumer Protection (Regulation of Credit Servicing Firms) Act 2015 (the “Act”) was introduced to ensure that consumers and SMEs whose loans have been sold to unregulated entities will continue to enjoy the same protections they enjoyed prior to the sale of their loan. The Act creates a new type of regulated entity (the “credit servicing firm”). A credit servicing firm is one which interact directly with borrowers in relation to their loans. The Act amends the provisions of a number of the Central Bank Acts.