Siobhan Keegan
Mrs Justice Keegan | |
|---|---|
| Judge of the High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland | |
| Assumed office 23 October 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Nationality | British |
| Residence | Northern Ireland |
| Education | Sacred Heart Grammar School, Newry, County Down, Northern Ireland |
| Alma mater | Queen's University Belfast |
| Occupation | Jurist |
| Profession | Law |
| Awards | QC (2006) DBE (2015) |
Dame Siobhan Roisin Keegan, DBE, QC, styled The Hon Mrs Justice Keegan, is a Northern Irish judge and former barrister specialising in family law. In October 2015, she was appointed one of the first female judges of the High Court of Northern Ireland; the other was Denise McBride.
Early life
Keegan was educated at St. Clare's Primary School and Sacred Heart Grammar School, Newry, County Down, Northern Ireland.[1][2]
She studied law at Queen's University Belfast and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree in July 1993. After further study, she was called to the Bar of Northern Ireland in September 1994.[2]
Legal career
Keegan became a barrister when she was called to the bar in September 1994.[2] She specialised in family law but has also had experience in criminal law and judicial review.[1]
She was made a Queen's Counsel (QC) in June 2006.[2] Between 2011 and 2013, she served as Chair of the Family Bar Association.[2] In 2014, she was elected Vice Chair of the Bar Council of Northern Ireland.[3]
Since 2013, Keegan has been one of barrister receiving the most legal aid funding in Northern Ireland. In the 2012/2013 financial year she received £504,177 and was ranked the fourth highest,[4] in 2013/2014 she received £513,405 and was ranked fourth,[5] and in 2014/2015 she received £427,632 and was ranked fourth.[6]
On 23 October 2015, Keegan was appointed a judge of the High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland.[1][7] She was sworn into office by Sir Declan Morgan, the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, at the same time as Denise McBride.[8] This made Keegan and McBride jointly the first female high court judges of Northern Ireland.[1][3]
On 23 November 2015, she was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE).[9]
References
- ^ a b c d "First women appointed as NI High Court judges". BBC News. BBC. 23 October 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
- ^ a b c d e "First female High Court judges appointed in NI". UTV. 23 October 2015. Archived from the original on 24 October 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
- ^ a b "Female judges appointed to NI High Court for first time". The Irish Times. 23 October 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
- ^ Hughes, Brendan (24 December 2013). "Legal aid cost public purse £94.1m". The Irish News. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- ^ Kula, Adam (16 April 2015). "Lawyers' legal aid fees described as staggering". The News Letter. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- ^ McAleese, Deborah (16 April 2015). "Belfast QC Patrick Lyttle paid more than £1m from public purse... for the second year in a row". The Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- ^ "Crown Office - Northern Ireland". The Belfast Gazette. 30 October 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Congratulations to Denise McBride QC and Siobhan Keegan QC on Celebrated Appointment". The Bar of Northern Ireland. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
- ^ "Damehoods conferred: Siobhan Keegan and Denise McBride". GOV.UK. Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 23 November 2015.