Our History

History of the IALT

The Irish Association of Law Teachers was established in 1979, and has always been conceived as an all-island association.

The Irish Association of Law Teachers celebrates the 40th anniversary of its foundation in 2019. It was established in 1979 as an all-island association with the aim of promoting excellence in legal education and scholarship. The annual conference is the focal point of the association’s year. The conference venue changes annually to reflect the broad geographical spread of our members. In recent years the conference has been held in Athlone (2018), Dunboyne (2017), Waterford (2016) and Galway (2015).

 

The Association has organised various workshops and seminars over the past 40 years. In April 2018, the tradition of holding an event in the early part of the year was revived with the holding of a Spring Discourse at the Sutherland School of Law, University College Dublin. The event was attended by over 40 members and took the format of an interview with Chief Justice Clarke conducted by Miriam O’Callaghan (acting pro bono).

 

There have been several publications of the Association. In 1984 the IALT published an Index to Irish Superior Court Written Judgments 1976-1982, edited by Jennifer Aston and Maeve Doyle, followed in 1990 by an Index to Cases Decided in the Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeal and High Court, 1966-1975. Papers delivered at the 1999 Conference were later published in a collection of essays edited by Eoin O’Dell, Leading Cases of the Twentieth Century (Round Hall 2000). In 2011 a collection of essays edited by Jennifer Schweppe and Thomas Mohr, 30 Years of Legal Scholarship (Round Hall 2011) was published, marking the development of legal scholarship in Ireland, and charting the history of the Irish Association of Law Teachers.

 

From its inception, the Association has welcomed members from all institutions involved in the provision of legal education across the island of Ireland, whether in universities, Institutes of Technology, private colleges, or professional institutions. It has also supported the research of doctoral students through a system of competitively-awarded conference grants and recognised the scholarly contributions of Irish legal academics through the award (every two years) of the Kevin Boyle book prize. Throughout its history, the association has fostered engagement with current issues in law teaching and legal research, and organised regular events on a diverse range of themes. It has been sustained in these endeavours by the colleagues who have given generously of their time to serve on the Council of the association, and by its loyal and enthusiastic membership.