Mella Carroll
Encyclopedia
Mella Elizabeth Laurie Carroll (6 March 1934 – 15 January 2006) was a judge of the High Court in the Republic of Ireland
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Mella Carroll was born in Dublin, her parents were Patrick Carroll (Commissioner of the Garda Síochána
from May 1967 until his retirement in September 1968) and Agnes Mary Caulfield. Carroll attended Sacred Heart Convent School of Lower Leeson Street and then University College, Dublin where she graduated in French and German. Then she studied at King's Inns
and was called to the Bar in 1957, and in 1976 was called to the Bar of Northern Ireland. In 1977 she became a Senior Counsel
in the Republic of Ireland. She became the first woman to serve on the High Court of Ireland, called on October 6, 1980.
During her High Court career she delivered a number of important decisions. For instance the attempted ban on One Girl's War: Personal Exploits in MI5's Most Secret Station (the memoirs of Joan Miller) was declined by her after request by the Attorney General of England and Wales. She also delivered judgements in controversial cases on abortion, bin charging and unmarried mothers. She sat in the Central Criminal Court over the Catherine Nevin
murder trial and subsequent retrial because of the jury being overheard in its deliberation. She retired from the courts in November 2005 due to long running illness she would have been entitled to serve until the following year.
Carroll chaired a number of high profile commissions in the Republic; the County and County Borough Electoral Area Boundaries Commission (1984), the Commission on the Status of Women (1991), the Commission on Nursing (1997).
Carroll also held judicial positions in the administrative tribunal of the International Labour Organisation, Geneva
, for a time being the vice-president. She was appointed Chancellor of Dublin City University
(and Chair of the Governing Authority) in 2001 and held this post until her death. She never married.
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
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Mella Carroll was born in Dublin, her parents were Patrick Carroll (Commissioner of the Garda Síochána
Garda Síochána
, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...
from May 1967 until his retirement in September 1968) and Agnes Mary Caulfield. Carroll attended Sacred Heart Convent School of Lower Leeson Street and then University College, Dublin where she graduated in French and German. Then she studied at King's Inns
King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns , is the institution which controls the entry of barristers-at-law into the justice system of Ireland...
and was called to the Bar in 1957, and in 1976 was called to the Bar of Northern Ireland. In 1977 she became a Senior Counsel
Senior Counsel
The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel is given to a senior barrister or advocate in some countries, typically equivalent to the title "Queen's Counsel" used in Commonwealth Realms...
in the Republic of Ireland. She became the first woman to serve on the High Court of Ireland, called on October 6, 1980.
During her High Court career she delivered a number of important decisions. For instance the attempted ban on One Girl's War: Personal Exploits in MI5's Most Secret Station (the memoirs of Joan Miller) was declined by her after request by the Attorney General of England and Wales. She also delivered judgements in controversial cases on abortion, bin charging and unmarried mothers. She sat in the Central Criminal Court over the Catherine Nevin
Catherine Nevin
Catherine Nevin is an Irish woman who was convicted in 2000 of murdering her husband Tom Nevin at Jack White's Inn, a pub owned by the couple in County Wicklow. The jury in her trial also found her guilty on three charges of soliciting others to kill him after five days of deliberation, then the...
murder trial and subsequent retrial because of the jury being overheard in its deliberation. She retired from the courts in November 2005 due to long running illness she would have been entitled to serve until the following year.
Carroll chaired a number of high profile commissions in the Republic; the County and County Borough Electoral Area Boundaries Commission (1984), the Commission on the Status of Women (1991), the Commission on Nursing (1997).
Carroll also held judicial positions in the administrative tribunal of the International Labour Organisation, Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, for a time being the vice-president. She was appointed Chancellor of Dublin City University
Dublin City University
Dublin City University is a university situated between Glasnevin, Santry, Ballymun and Whitehall on the Northside of Dublin in Ireland...
(and Chair of the Governing Authority) in 2001 and held this post until her death. She never married.
External links
- RTE - Death of Ms Justice Mella Carroll
- DCU - New Chancellor of Dublin City University
- The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
- Obituary