Members Of The Tribunal
Introduction
The Tribunal is grouped into divisions, each of which consists of one Member. On average, seven divisions sit and hear appeals on a daily basis, four days a week. The Members of the Tribunal are part-time and the majority of them have private legal practices. The Members are appointed by the Minister for a term of 3 years and must have been a practising Barrister or Solicitor for at least five years to qualify for appointment.
List of Members
The following is an alphabetical list of the Members of the Tribunal who are serving.
| Member |  |
| |
| Ben Garvey B.L | |
| Bernadette Cronin S.C | |
| Bernard McCabe B.L. | |
| Conor Gallagher B.L. | |
| David Andrews S.C | |
| Donal Egan B.L. | |
| Eamonn Barnes B.L. | |
| Eamon Cahill S.C | |
| Elizabeth O'Brien B.L. | |
| Emma Toal B.L. | |
| Fergus O'Connor B.L. | |
| Laura MacKenna B.L. | |
| Majella Twomey B.L. | |
| Margaret Levey B.L. | |
| Michael O'Kennedy S.C. | |
| Michelle O'Gorman B.L. | |
| Olive Brennan B.L. | |
| Patrick Hurley Solicitor | |
| Paul Christopher B.L. | |
| Paul Gormley B.L. | |
| Ricardo Dourado B.L. | |
| Ronan Maguire B.L. | |
| Samantha Cruess Callaghan B.L. | |
| Sean Bellew B.L. | |
| Susan Nolan Solicitor | |
Structure of Work of the Members of the Tribunal
In accordance with paragraph 13 of the Second Schedule to the Act, cases are assigned to Members of the Tribunal by the Chairperson. This power may be delegated to a member of staff of the Tribunal by the Chairperson in accordance with paragraph 16 of the Second Schedule. However, the practice to date is that this provision has not been activated other than when the Chairperson is absent on annual leave. Each case must first be examined by the Member, who establishes whether he/she believes it is necessary for further enquiries to be made of the Refugee Applications Commissioner (under Section 16(6) of the 1996 Act) or whether the observations of the Commissioner should be sought in relation to the grounds of appeal filed (under Section 16(7) of the 1996 Act), all this before a hearing is scheduled. Where the applicant is entitled to request an oral hearing the Notice of Appeal may include a request to the Tribunal to direct the attendance of a witness before the Tribunal. The Member must determine in accordance with Section 16(11) of the 1996 Act whether this request should be granted.
Before deciding an appeal, the Member is specifically obliged under Section 16(16) of the 1996 Act to consider:-
- the notice and the grounds of appeal including all supporting documentation and records, the report and recommendation of the Commissioner
- the report of the Commissioner under Section 13
- any observations from the Commissioner and/or the UNHCR
- the evidence adduced at the oral hearing and any representations made at the hearing
- any documents, representations in writing or other information furnished pursuant to Section 11 of the 1996 Act and any documents submitted with the appeal.
The Member then prepares a written Decision. The Decision is checked, signed by the Member and issued to the applicant and his/her legal representative. Significant administrative support is required to achieve the objective of accepting, preparing and scheduling of appeals to the issuing of Decisions.
^ Back to top