Comhrá with Ennis Community College

On Thursday 7 May, the Supreme Court hosted a ‘Comhrá’ with students of the Politics & Society class at Ennis Community College in Co. Clare.   The students spent an hour listening to Ms Justice Niamh Hyland of the Supreme Court and Mr Justice Michael Quinn of the High Court.  The Judges were accompanied by their respective Judicial Assistants, Ms Síofra Carlin and Mr John Blundell, pictured above.  

Comhrá (the word for ‘conversation’ in Irish) is an education initiative of the Supreme Court that enables secondary school students to participate in live question-and-answer sessions with judges of the Supreme Court from anywhere in Ireland by video call.  The programme provides students with an opportunity to ask judges questions about their work, the role of the Supreme Court and of the courts system more generally within our democracy, allowing them to gain an insight and understanding of the function of the Supreme Court and promote an interest in law.

The students asked Judge Hyland and Judge Quinn questions on a range of topics, from their career paths and how the Irish courts operate on a day-to-day basis, to the skills required to be a good Judge and the differences between the Irish legal system and those in other countries.   The students also asked some challenging and thoughtful questions such as whether the Judges felt that their experience as lawyers has given them a particular insight into people and society, and whether the Judges are influenced by their personal moral compasses. 

This was the final Comhrá sesson of the 2025/26 academic year.  The Comhrá secondary schools programme will resume after the summer vacation.