The President of the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Kelly, was left in what one observer called "a biblical rage" after learning that a High Court judge was to quit within four days, The Irish Times has learnt.
Ms Justice Margaret Heneghan, who was appointed just two years ago, fulfilled her legal obligation in informing the President of Ireland, Mr Michael D Higgins, via the Department of the Taoiseach of her resignation during the two-month court recess.
However, Mr Justice Kelly, who as president of the court is responsible for its administration and the assignment of judges to cases, did not learn of her intentions until Thursday, September 28th, four days before the new court term.
Ms Justice Margaret Heneghan informed him via letter, described by a legal source as “short and to the point”, stating that she would not be returning to work after the recess.
The 58-year-old judge stepped down unexpectedly on Monday of last week following only two years on the High Court bench.
His discovery of her resignation, which took the legal world by surprise due to her relatively young age, left Mr Justice Kelly in a “biblical rage”, according to sources with knowledge of his reaction.
Her departure has caused difficulties for Mr Justice Kelly who is already coping with over-burdened High Court lists.
Ms Justice Heneghan is married to businessman Austin Power, who recently sold Elder Home Care, a nursing home help franchise, to a French company for a sum believed to be in the tens of millions of euro.
Other interests
The company, which traded under the name Comfort Keepers, was established by Mr Power and his brother Bob in 2005.
Ms Justice Heneghan has told colleagues she was resigning from the bench to pursue other interests with her husband. She did not answer requests for comment this week and informed The Irish Times through a Courts Service spokesman that she had nothing to say on the matter. Mr Justice Kelly did not return requests for comment either.
According to four judicial sources Mr Justice Kelly had to make late arrangements to cover several High Court matters.
“[The early departure] is a massive headache. The High Court is already running to stand still and needs a full complement of judges just to do that,” a source said.
The problems are compounded by the pending retirement of another High Court judge, Mr Justice Henry Abbot who must step down in December when he turns 70.
It is unclear whether Ms Justice Heneghan’s replacement can be appointed immediately or if the Government will have to wait for the proposed Judicial Appointment Bill to pass and appoint a replacement under the new system.
The Bill proposes that judicial appointments be handled by a committee comprising of judges and lay people, with a lay majority and lay chair.
Prestigious
During her time on the High Court bench, Ms Justice Heneghan was to a large extent assigned to bail hearings; a field considered among the least prestigious of High Court assignments.
It is understood she had been eager to return to trial work overseeing murder and rape cases in the Criminal Courts of Justice.
Her early departure means she will only qualify for slightly more than a quarter of the judicial pension. Rules introduced in 2012 State judges must serve 20 years on the bench to qualify for a full pension, up from 15 years under the old system.
Ms Justice Heneghan was called to the bar in 1993 after which she specialised in family law and personal injury cases. She also sat on the Legal Aid Board from 2009.
She was made a senior counsel in 2009 and a year later was appointed a judge of the Circuit Court.
In 2015, she was elevated to the High Court, one of a group of five people appointed to replace outgoing members.
If Ms Justice Heneghan chooses to return to practice she will only be allowed to argue cases in the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court as former judges cannot practice in their old jurisdiction or lower jurisdictions.
However, it is understood she does not intend to resume her legal career.
