King's Inns

The Honorable Society of King's Inns

Óstaí an Rí
Motto	Nolumus Mutari
Motto in English	we shall not be changed
Established	1541 by Henry VIII
Dean	Eimear Browne (Dean of School of Law)
Under Treasurer	Sean Aylward
Address	Henrietta Street Dublin 1, Dublin, Ireland
Website	www.kingsinns.ie

The Honorable Society of King's Inns (HSKI) is the institution which controls the entry of barristers-at-law into the justice system of Ireland. The full title retains the historical spelling variant "honorable" in preference to the contemporary Hiberno-English spelling of "honourable" (see article 'spelling differences').

History

The society was created in 1541, 51 years before Trinity College, Dublin was founded, making it one of Ireland's oldest professional and educational institutions. The founders named their society in honour of King Henry VIII of England and his newly established Kingdom of Ireland. The society secured a lease of lands at Inns Quay on the north bank of the River Liffey in Dublin. The society was reconstituted in 1607, having been inactive for some time. In 1790 the Inns Quays site was acquired for the purposes of the Four Courts; the foundation stone at the present building at the top of Henrietta Street was laid on 1 August 1800, with James Gandon being commissioned as the architect. The building was completed by his pupil Henry Aaron Baker.^[1]

List of Treasurers from 1804–1979[2][3]
1804–1805 Viscount Avonmore
1805–1806 William Downes
1806–1807 Lord Norbury
1807–1808 S. O'Grady
1808–1809 No name
1809–1810 Mr. Justice Day
1810–1811 No name
1811–1812 Mr. Justice Fox
1812–1813 No name
1813–1814 W.C. Smith
1814–1815 Charles Osbourne
1815–1816 Baron McCleland
1816–1817 Judge Mayne
1817–1818 Judge Fletcher
1818–1819 Judge Moore
1819–1820 Judge Johnson
1820–1821 Judge Jebb
1821–1822 No name
1822–1823 Mr. Justice Burton
1823–1824 Baron Pennefather
1824–1825 Charles Kendal Bushe, LCJ
1825–1826 Mr. Justice Vandeleur
1826–1827 Mr. Justice Torrens
1827–1828 William MacMahon, MR
1828–1829 Lord Plunket
1829–1830 No name
1830–1831 S. O'Grady
1831–1832 Sir William Smith. Bt.
1832–1833 Baron Foster
1833–1834 John Doherty
1834–1835 Henry Joy
1835–1836 Mr. Justice Burton
1836–1837 No name
1837–1838 Mr. Justice Torrens
1838–1839 Baron Foster
1839–1840 Judge Crampton
1840–1841 Judge Perrin
1841–1842 No name
1842–1843 Baron Richards
1843–1844 Nicholas Ball
1844–1845 No name
1845–1846 Thomas Lefroy
1846–1847 Edward Pennefather, LCJ
1847–1848 Francis Blackburn, LCJ
1848–1849 T. B. C. Smith, MR
1849–1850 David R. Pigot
1850–1851 Judge Moore
1851–1852 James Henry Monahan, LCJ of the Common Pleas Court
1852–1853 The Lord Chancellor
1853–1854 Baron Greene
1854–1855 No name
1855–1856 Thomas Lefroy
1856–1857 T. B. C. Smith, MR
1857–1858 No name
1858–1859 James Henry Monahan, LCJ of the Common Pleas Court
1859–1860 Mr. Justice Christian
1860–1861 Mr. Justice O'Brien
1861–1862 Mr. Justice Hayes
1862–1863 Baron Fitzgerald
1863–1864 No name
1864–1865 Baron Fitzgerald
1865–1866 Baron Deasy
1866–1867 Mr. Justice O'Hagan
1867–1868 James Whiteside, LCJ
1868–1869 The Lord Chancellor
1869–1870 No name
1870–1871 Mr. Justice Lawson
1871–1872 George Battersby, QC
1872–1873 Gerald FitzGibbon
1873–1874 Baron Dowse
1874–1875 Mr. Justice Morris
1875–1876 The Judge of the Court of Probate
1876–1877 Hewitt Poole Jellett
1877–1878 Mr. Justice Barry
1878–1879 James Murphy
1879–1880 George Augustus Chichester May
1880–1881 Edward Pennefather, QC
1881–1882 Mr. Justice Harrison
1882–1883 Mr. Serjeant David Sherlock (First Serjeant at Law)
1883-1884 Judge Townsend
1884–1885 Thomas De Moleyns, QC
1885–1886 Andrew M. Porter, MR
1886–1887 Piers F. White, QC
1887–1888 The Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer
1888–1889 Arthur Stanley Jackson, QC
1889–1890 Lord Justice Fitzgibbon
1890–1891 John Richardson, QC
1891–1892 Mr. Justice Holmes
1892–1893 Samuel Walker
1893–1894 Judge Miller
1894–1895 Charles Hare Hemphill, QC, Solicitor General
1895–1896 Mr. Justice Johnson
1896–1897 William Bennett Campion, QC
1897–1898 Mr. Justice O'Brien
1898–1899 No name
1899–1900 Mr. Justice Andrews
1900–1901 John H. Twigg, QC
1902–1903 Stephen Ronan
1903–1904 Mr. Justice Boyd
1904–1905 Mr. Serjeant William Houston Dodd (Third Serjeant at Law)
1905-1906 Mr. Justice Madden
1906–1907 James H. M. Campbell, KC, MP
1907–1908 Mr. Justice Kenny
1908–1909 Charles L. Matheson, KC
1909–1910 Mr. Justice White
1910–1911 Charles Andrew O'Connor, KC, Solicitor General
1911–1912 Mr. Justice Barton
1912–1913 John Gordon, KC
1913–1914 Mr. Justice Wylie
1914–1915 Denis Henry, KC
1915–1916 Gerald Fitzgerald
1916–1917 Arthur W. Samuels, KC
1917–1918 Thomas Lopdell O'Shaughnessy (Last Recorder of Dublin)
1918–1919 Godfrey Fetherstonhaugh, KC
1919–1920 Mr. Justice Moore
1920–1921 Robert F. Harrison
1921–1922 Mr. Justice Powell
1922–1923 William Morgan Jellet, KC, MP
1923–1924 Thomas Francis Molony, LCJ (Last Lord Chief Justice of Ireland)
1924–1925 Samuel L. Brown, KC
1925–1926 Mr. Justice Gerald Fitzgibbon
1926–1927 Alexander F. Blood, KC
1927–1928 Mr. Justice Henry Hanna
1928–1929 Garrett William Walker
1929–1930 Mr. Justice William E. Wylie
1930–1931 Hewitt R. Poole
1931–1932 Mr. Justice Timothy Sullivan (First President of the High Court)
1932–1933 Frederick W. Price
1933–1934 Frederick W. Price
1934–1935 Mr. Justice James Creed Meredith
1935–1936 Ernest J. Phelps, SC
1936–1937 Mr. Justice Johnson
1937–1938 Frederick F. Denning
1938–1939 Mr. Justice James A. Murnaghan
1939–1940 Andrew Kingsbury Overend, KC
1940–1941 Mr. Justice John O'Byrne
1941–1942 Thomas S. McCann
1942–1943 Conor Alexander Maguire (Second President of the High Court)
1943–1944 Patrick Lynch, KC
1944–1945 Mr Justice Geoghegan
1945–1946 J. M. Fitzgerald, SC
1946–1947 Mr. Justice Cahir Davitt
1947–1948 John Aloysius Costello
1948–1949 Mr. Justice George Gavan Duffy (Third President of the High Court)
1949–1950 R. G. L. Leonard, KC
1950–1951 Mr. Justice George William Shannon (First President of the Circuit Court)
1951–1952 Vincent Rice, SC
1952–1953 Mr. Justice Cecil Lavery
1953–1954 Frank Fitzgibbon, QC
1954–1955 Mr. Justice Martin C. Maguire
1955–1956 Mr. Carson
1956–1957 Mr Justice Kevin Haugh
1957–1958 P. McCarthy
1958–1959 Mr. Justice T.C. Kingsmill Moore
1959–1960 Henry J. Molony
1960–1961 Mr. Justice O'Daly
1961–1962 Richard McGonigal, SC
1962–1963 Mr. Justice Frederick O. Budd
1963–1964 Thomas F. Bacon
1964–1965 Mr. Justice George D. Murnaghan
1965–1966 Mr Campbell
1966–1967 Mr. Justice Richard McLoughlin
1967–1968 Denis Pringle
1968–1969 Mr. Justice William Fitzgerald
1969–1970 G. Micks
1970–1971 Mr. Justice Thomas Teevan
1971–1972 T. K. Liston, SC
1972–1973 Mr. Justice Aindrias Ó Caoimh (Fifth President of the High Court)
1973–1974 Thomas B. Hannin
1974–1975 Mr. Justice Brian Walsh
1975–1976 Ernest M. Wood
1976–1977 Mr. Justice John Kenny
1977–1978 Oliver D. Gogarty, SC
1978–1979 Mr. Justice Seamus Henchy
1979–1980 Thomas Vincent Davy, SC (The last officeholder to hold the position as Treasurer)

Academic life

From almost the moment that King's Inns was founded, London required Irishmen who wished to practise as barristers to attend the inns of court in London, and that requirement stayed in place until the late nineteenth century. Only from the middle of the eighteenth century onwards were courses of legal education provided at King's Inns.^[4] Candidates who have an approved law degree may apply for the Degree of Barrister-at-Law (Latin: ad Gradum Advocatum Apud Judices). Alternatively, candidates without an approved law degree may undertake the society's Diploma in Legal Studies before presenting for the society's degree. Those who are presented with the degree are entitled to be called to and practise at the "Bar of Ireland". In 2006, the society had an enrolment of approximately 300 students, whilst there are approximately 2,000 practising barristers.

Profile

Courtyard of the society's building on Henrietta Street

The society has generally kept a low profile in current affairs in Ireland, though it did come to prominence in 1972, when financial difficulties led to the society selling a considerable stock of non-legal books it had in its library. The library collection dates from the end of the 18th century, (when the society also adopted its motto 'Nolumus mutari'^[5]), and was based on part of that of Christopher Robinson, senior puisne judge of the Court of King's Bench, who died in 1787. Books were sold at auction at Sotheby's, London, and a considerable stock of them were sold to clients outside Ireland. This was seen at the time as a major cultural outflow, as many of the books were of historical and cultural significance.^[6] In addition, the society's library had received an annual grant since 1945 for the upkeep of the books from the Irish Exchequer. A King's Inns team or individual has often won the prestigious Irish Times National Debating Championship, and in 2010 won the European Universities Debating Championships. In 2006 the Inns' hurling team competed in and won the Fergal Maher Cup (3rd Level Division 3) in their inaugural year and have subsequently reached the final and semi-final.

After crossing Bolton Street, Henrietta Street runs into King's Inns Street. The latter was renamed due to its proximity to the King's Inns. In 1756, this street appears as "Turn Again Lane" on Rocque's map of Dublin. Henrietta Street is thought to have been named by Luke Gardiner in honour of Henrietta Somerset (1690–1726), who was married to the second duke of Grafton, lord lieutenant of Ireland, 1724-7. Her portrait by Enoch Seeman survives.^[7]

Notable alumni and academics

• Theobald Wolfe Tone
• Mary Robinson
• Daniel O'Connell
• Edward Carson
• Patrick Pearse
• John A. Costello
• Liam Cosgrave
• Jack Lynch
• Charles Haughey
• Henry Grattan

References

1. [Colum Kenny, King's Inns and the Kingdom of Ireland: The Irish 'inn of court' 1541–1800 (Irish Academic Press & Irish Legal History Society, 1992), pp. 261–5]
2. • Source: The Honorable Society of King's Inns: Library
   • Source: The Longman Handbook of Modern Irish History Since 1800 by N. C. Fleming and Alan O'Day, Pages 481–485 ISBN 0-582-08102-5
3. • Notes on List:
   • LCJ: Lord Chief Justice
   • MR: Master of the Rolls
   • KC: King's Counsel
   • QC: Queen's Counsel
   • SC: Senior Counsel
4. Colum Kenny. Tristram Kennedy and the Revival of Irish Legal Training, 1835–1885, Irish Academic Press & Irish Legal History Society, 1996.
5. Colum Kenny. 2005. Nolumus mutari: time for change at King's Inns?. Irish Jurist, 40, 1, 321–346.
6. Colum Kenny, King's Inns and the Battle of the Books, 1972: Cultural Controversy at a Dublin Library (Four Courts Press & Irish Legal History Society, 2002), passim
7. Kenny, Battle of the Books, facing p. 142.

External links

• Official site – King's Inns
• Bar of Northern Ireland.

Coordinates: 53°21′10.4″N 6°16′18″W / 53.352889°N 6.27167°W