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The Attorney General has been asked to advise the Taoiseach and the Government on the controversy surrounding Supreme Court Justice Seamus Woulfe and his attendance at a golf dinner in Galway in August.
Judge Woulfe was among more than 80 guests, including then-Agriculture Minister Dara Calleary and EU Commissioner Phil Hogan, who attended the Oireachtas Golf Society event despite Covid-19 public health guidelines place limits on indoor gatherings.
Mr. Calleary and Mr. Hogan subsequently resigned, as did Jerry Buttimer, who resigned as Seanad Leas-Cathaoirleach.
Opposition politicians have called for the Oireachtas to address the matter, following the publication of correspondence showing that Chief Justice Frank Clarke told Justice Woulfe that he should resign.
Read more:
Full letters
Letter of November 5 to Mr. Justice Woulfe
Letter of November 9 from Justice Woulfe to the Chief Justice
Letter of November 9 to Mr. Justice Woulfe from the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
Justice Clarke said that the cumulative effect of the controversy had caused significant and irreparable damage to the Supreme Court.
He told Mr. Judge Woulfe that these were matters that affected public trust and his personal opinion was that Judge Woulfe should resign to maintain public trust in the court, the judiciary and the administration of justice.
Judge Woulfe said that he would accept the sanctions proposed by the Chief Justice that he would be reprimanded and would not sit in court until February.
He has suggested donating his salary for that period to charity.
The Chief Justice said he should resign or return it.
However, Judge Woulfe said that he had concluded that he should not resign.
He said that he did not believe that any of the reasons given constituted grounds for his resignation, much less judicial misconduct, and described his points of disagreement in a nine-page letter.
Labor leader Alan Kelly said the legislature would have to act if this stalemate continued.
Sinn Féin said that it was untenable for Judge Woulfe to remain in office and that the Minister of Justice should make a statement without delay.
The party’s Justice spokesman said it is a difficult and unprecedented situation but “we are where we are.”
Martin Kenny said that while we must be respectful of the judiciary and be careful not to undermine it, this situation cannot continue and a clear path needs to be established to address the matter.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Mr. Kenny said that this is not just a problem for the opposition, but for the entire Oireachtas.
Co-leader of the Social Democrats, Catherine Murphy, said that Justice Woulfe has demonstrated an incredible lack of judgment for a Supreme Court justice and that his position is now without a doubt untenable.
An assistant professor of law at Trinity College Dublin says that Chief Justice Clarke has made it clear that he has no power to demand, or even ask, that Seamus Woulfe resign, but has expressed his personal opinion that the administration of justice has been undermined by their behavior. and this “is an extraordinary and unprecedented step” that highlights the seriousness of the matter.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Dr. David Kenny said there are only two ways for a judge to leave the court before retiring: resign or be charged with outright misconduct.
The second procedure, he said, can only be done by Dáil or Seanad, so “now the ball is in the field of politics.”
He added that there is no definition of outright misconduct and noted that Judge Denham’s report found that attending the Clifden dinner alone should not be grounds for calling for Judge Woulfe to resign.
Dr. Kenny said that Judge Woulfe would be entitled to a fair procedure if there was some sort of investigation by an Oireachtas committee and ultimately if he felt he was treated unfairly, he could take a case to court, which that it would be a very difficult situation.
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