Gavin Elliott
@sgelliott.net
400 followers 590 following 110 posts
Practising barrister based in Dublin, Ireland. Environmental, Housing and Climate Justice. Born 335.42 ppm. He/Him.
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sgelliott.net
Ending up in court over something you said on RTE doesn't scream "safe pair of hands" TBH.
sgelliott.net
Even leaving aside the content of potentially defamatory words for a moment. The President is our chief diplomat, do we want someone who gets flustered under mild questioning and says something they shouldn't have?
tonygroves.bsky.social
Heather Humphreys: I will not be engaging in the Ivan Yates #SmearTheBejaysus campaign

Also Heather Humphreys: *goes on an RTE presidential debate and makes defamatory remarks*
sgelliott.net
As Catherine Connolly said during the week....
sgelliott.net
Very decent of Micheál Martin to acknowledge that the tenant who lost the money, and not just Fianna Fáil, might be a victim too.
A screenshot from The journal.ie which says

"Martin confirmed that he had listened to the recent podcast, where the tenant outlined the situation with Gavin over the years. 

The Taoiseach said: “I think the tenant is also a victim in all of this."
sgelliott.net
Catherine Connolly was the accent coordinator for every Hollywood film set in Ireland since 1985.

#SmearTheBejaysus #SmearTheBejaysis
sgelliott.net
*mainstream press. She already gave her reply to The Ditch.
sgelliott.net
Did Heather Humphreys avoid tax while a senior government minister?

It would be interesting to hear her response if anyone in the press thought to ask her, but I suppose we'll just never know.
wereontheditch.bsky.social
Heather Humphreys won’t say if she paid an anti-vacancy tax on her unused residential property.

Humphreys has left the property unoccupied for the last 14 years, during which time the vacant homes tax was introduced.

www.ontheditch.com/humphreys-wo...
Humpheys won’t say if she paid vacant homes tax
She’s left the property unoccupied for more than a decade.
www.ontheditch.com
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
wereontheditch.bsky.social
Heather Humphreys won’t say if she paid an anti-vacancy tax on her unused residential property.

Humphreys has left the property unoccupied for the last 14 years, during which time the vacant homes tax was introduced.

www.ontheditch.com/humphreys-wo...
Humpheys won’t say if she paid vacant homes tax
She’s left the property unoccupied for more than a decade.
www.ontheditch.com
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
irishdocsenv.bsky.social
These aren’t offhand remarks. They’re a pattern.

They minimise. Mock. Downplay. Delay. Ignore.

The climate crisis is here. The question is: will our leaders wake up before it’s too late.
sgelliott.net
Should probably check them now, rather than in a bit.
sgelliott.net
Also a crisis for people living in insecure & unaffordable tenancies, people making decisions about if they can afford to go to college, people skipping meals to pay the mortgage. The list goes on.

Saying it's only a crisis for those without homes is profoundly insulting to all those people.
sgelliott.net
Full statement from the Bar Council in the other place.
Statement from the Council of The Bar of Ireland: The fundamental importance of an independent referral Bar
It is the duty of barristers to be independent and free from any influence, especially such as may arise from their personal interests or external pressure, in the discharge of their professional duties as barristers.
Barristers cannot discriminate in favour of or against any person availing, or seeking to avail, of the services of the barrister on the grounds of race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, language, politics, religion, nationality, national or social origin, national minority, birth or other status.
It is also the duty of barristers to accept instructions in any case in their area of practice. As a result, barristers should not be identified with their clients or their clients' causes or suffer adverse consequences as a result of being so identified. This fundamental principle arises from the Code of Conduct of The Bar of Ireland and is recognised in the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers and in the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.
The duty of barristers to accept instructions, sometimes referred to as the "cab-rank rule", ensures that everyone is entitled to access to justice and is central to trust in the Irish legal system and the rule of law
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
wereontheditch.bsky.social
Fine Gael’s Heather Humphreys has avoided a property tax on her old constituency office after failing to declare she’s no longer entitled to an exemption.

For failing to make this declaration Humphreys could face criminal prosecution.

www.ontheditch.com/fine-gaels-h...
Humphreys has avoided a property tax on old office
She could face criminal prosecution under laws introduced when she was a government minister.
www.ontheditch.com
sgelliott.net
The principle that a lawyer should not be identified with their clients is fundamentally to the rule of law and is protected in international human rights instruments.

Worryingly, It's also a principle that the current government don't believe in.

www.thejournal.ie/bar-council-...
sgelliott.net
These sorts of "no reason" evictions have no place in a modern rental system. These people are suffering the consequences of government changes in 2022 which will benefit no-one until mid 2028.

The 2022 changes should have applied to tenancies in being.

www.thejournal.ie/kerry-12-683...
Fourteen households served with eviction notices from Killarney homes owned by investment fund
One tenant moved to Killarney from Cork because of the housing shortage there.
www.thejournal.ie
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
donnchalaw.bsky.social
Is there a barrel bottom that hasn’t been scraped yet in the determined drive to attack the character and professionalism of the Left candidate who’s doing well in polls? Of course Catherine Connolly BL acted for clients on a normal disinterested basis!

www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
Catherine Connolly did ‘all types of work’ as barrister and represented banks during crash
Presidential election candidate says she was ‘obliged as a lawyer to act on behalf of variety of clients’
www.irishtimes.com
sgelliott.net
Steen and her cadre preparing the narrative that this election, which has taken place under the same rules as the last 14 elections, is somehow illegitimate.

Straight out of the far-right playbook. Trump would be proud.

www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
Maria Steen calls for presidential election to be cancelled over Jim Gavin’s departure
Conservative campaigner missed out on required signatures to make the ballot
www.irishtimes.com
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
stephanenny.bsky.social
More money for greyhound racing than domestic violence in this year's budget. AGAIN
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
robertbohan.bsky.social
Am only catching up now on the animal cruelty story about FG candidate for President, Heather Humphreys.

She sent a letter to the Dept of Agriculture, about a live legal case regarding ‘stomach churning’ animal cruelty, on behalf of the farmer involved. The case was then dropped.
Reposted by Gavin Elliott
nessanvaughan.bsky.social
I spoke on behalf of SVP - Society of St. Vincent de Paul Ireland on RTE about our reaction to #Budget2026
sgelliott.net
I'd missed that. That's.....odd.