Michael Moriarty (judge)

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2022}}

{{Use Irish English|date=February 2022}}

{{Short description|Irish judge (born 1946)}}

{{Infobox judge

| image =

| office = Judge of the High Court

| term_start = 11 March 1996

| term_end = 23 November 2018

| nominator = Government of Ireland

| appointer = Mary Robinson

| office1 = Judge of the Circuit Court

| term_start1 = 13 January 1987

| term_end1 = 11 March 1996

| nominator1 = Government of Ireland

| appointer1 = Patrick Hillery

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1946|8|10|df=y}}

| birth_place = Belfast, Northern Ireland

| death_date =

| death_place =

| spouse = {{Ubl|Mary Irvine (div.)|Doreen Delahunty}}

| children = 3

| education = Blackrock College

| alma_mater = {{Ubl|University College Dublin|King's Inns}}

|}}

Michael Anthony Moriarty, SC (born 10 August 1946) is a retired Irish judge who served as a Judge of the High Court from 1996 to 2018 and a Judge of the Circuit Court from 1987 to 1996.

Early life and career

Michael Moriarty was born in Belfast to James and Nora Moriarty.{{cite news |title=Five called to Inner Bar |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=6 March 1962 |page=8}} He moved to Dublin in 1960 and was educated at Blackrock College, University College Dublin and King's Inns. He was called to the Irish Bar in 1968, and became a Senior Counsel in March 1982. He specialised in criminal law at the bar.

He was appointed Chairman of the Employment Appeals Tribunal in 1986.

Judicial career

He became a Circuit Court judge in 1987. He was subsequently appointed a High Court judge in March 1996.{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/business/name-mr-justice-michael-moriarty-1.1258578|title=Name: Mr Justice Michael Moriarty|newspaper=The Irish Times|date=29 January 1999|access-date=18 January 2016|archive-date=10 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510195921/http://www.irishtimes.com/business/name-mr-justice-michael-moriarty-1.1258578|url-status=live}} He was the chairperson of the Lord Mayor's Commission on Crime.

He is best known as Chair of the Moriarty Tribunal, which he chaired between 1997 and 2010.{{cite news |last1=Carolan |first1=Mary |title=Tributes paid to Mr Justice Michael Moriarty on retirement |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/courts/high-court/tributes-paid-to-mr-justice-michael-moriarty-on-retirement-1.3455707 |accessdate=20 May 2020 |newspaper=The Irish Times |language=en |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109041557/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/courts/high-court/tributes-paid-to-mr-justice-michael-moriarty-on-retirement-1.3455707 |url-status=live }} The Tribunal investigated the financial affairs of former Taoiseach Charles Haughey and former Minister Michael Lowry.{{cite news |title=Tributes as Justice Moriarty retires |url=https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/tributes-as-justice-moriarty-retires-36791943.html |accessdate=20 May 2020 |work=Irish Independent |language=en |archive-date=23 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923035911/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/tributes-as-justice-moriarty-retires-36791943.html |url-status=live }} The first report, in 2006, found that Haughey had misappropriated funds.{{cite news |title=Bungs, blank cheques and the Boss: final verdict delivered on Haughey's corruption |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/dec/20/ireland |accessdate=20 May 2020 |work=The Guardian |date=20 December 2006 |language=en |archive-date=11 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200811215309/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/dec/20/ireland |url-status=live }} The second report, delivered in 2011, found that Lowry had shared information with Denis O'Brien "of significant value and assistance" to aid in the awarding of a mobile telephone licence.{{cite news |title=Moriarty Tribunal publishes final report |url=https://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0322/298932-moriarty/ |accessdate=20 May 2020 |work=RTÉ News |date=22 March 2011 |language=en |archive-date=9 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200409043859/https://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0322/298932-moriarty/ |url-status=live }}

He retired in April 2018, following 31 years as a judge.

Personal life

He was formerly married to Mary Irvine, with whom he has three children.{{cite news |last1=Leahy |first1=Pat |title=Ms Justice Mary Irvine to be promoted to the Supreme Court |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/ms-justice-mary-irvine-to-be-promoted-to-the-supreme-court-1.3847503 |accessdate=20 May 2020 |newspaper=The Irish Times |language=en |archive-date=2 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402215208/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/ms-justice-mary-irvine-to-be-promoted-to-the-supreme-court-1.3847503 |url-status=live }} He subsequently married Doreen Delahunty.

References