A
Acceptance
The act of accepting an offer, agreement, or contract. It may be by words or by conduct.
Acquisition
The process of acquiring ownership or control of something.
Action
A legal proceeding or lawsuit.
Adverse Possession
Adverse possession occurs when a third party occupies land, without the true owner’s permission, and then asserts ownership over it. The occupation must be continuous, open, and of a definite and positive character for a specific period, typically 12 years.
Affidavit
A written statement of fact, made under oath or affirmation, which allows evidence to be presented to the court.
Anti-Money Laundering (AML)
Procedures to prevent, detect, and report money laundering activities.
Appeal
The transfer of a case from a lower to a higher court, to review and potentially reverse or modify the lower court's decision.
Appellant
The party who appeals a lower court's decision.
Arrears
Unpaid or overdue debts or payments.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial Intelligence (AI) broadly refers to the ability of computing technologies and software to perform tasks to simulate human cognition and learning. Learn more about our Artificial Intelligence (AI) expertise.
Asset Finance
The use of assets as collateral for a loan or lease. The financing may involve a single asset or a number of assets. The main asset financing structures are in the form of (i) a secured lending or (ii) a lease or a combination of both.
Audiovisual Media Services Directive
The Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) is a piece of EU legislation that aims to regulate all audiovisual media services across EU Member States.
Auto-enrolment
Auto-enrolment is a new pension savings scheme. It is expected to be introduced in early 2025 for certain employees who are not already paying into a pension. These employees will be automatically included in the scheme but can opt out after six months. The primary goal of this scheme is to increase pension coverage and decrease pension inadequacy in Ireland. It is hoped that 850,000 people will be auto-enrolled into the system once it is established.
B
Beneficiary
A person or entity that receives a benefit or is entitled to receive a benefit under a legal instrument, such as a will or trust.
Breach of Contract
A refusal or failure to fulfill the terms of a contract.
Burden of Proof
The obligation to prove a fact or set of facts in a legal proceeding. Eg in a criminal case, the burden of proving the guilt of the accused rests on the prosecution; in a negligence case, the burden of proving negligence rests on the plaintiff.
C
Class Action
A class action is a legal mechanism which allows a member of a group of persons to bring an action on behalf of themselves and other members of the group to collectively sue another party.
Coimisiún na Meán
Coimisiún na Meán is Ireland's Media Commission, established in March 2023. Coimisiún na Meán is designated as Ireland’s Digital Services Coordinator under the DSA.
Collateral
Property or assets that are provided as security for a loan or other obligation. In the event that such loan or obligation fails to be repaid/met, the chargee (the person to whom the collateral was provided) will have recourse to the collateral.
Collective Redress
Collective redress is a system which allows claimants in an action to take one joint case rather than multiple individual cases.
Consideration
Something of value given in exchange for a promise or performance in a contract.
Consumer Representative Actions
Actions brought by qualified entities before national courts or administrative authorities on behalf of groups of consumers to seek injunctive measures eg to stop a trader's unlawful practices.
Contributory Negligence
Contributory negligence refers to a situation where the plaintiff is partially responsible for the harm they have suffered. This principle is used to determine the degree of responsibility each party holds in a negligence claim. It can significantly impact the outcome of a case.
Conveyance
The transfer of ownership or title of real property.
D
Damages
Monetary compensation awarded for loss suffered by a person or injury.
De Facto
In fact, in reality, as opposed to in law.
Debt Warehousing
A practice in financial management where debts are accumulated and processed together at a later date.
Defendant
A person against whom an action, information, or other civil proceeding is brought; also a person charged with a criminal offence.
Digital Services Coordinator
Digital Services Coordinator is a role established under the EU’s Digital Services Act. The Digital Services Coordinator appointed in each Member State will be responsible for all matters relating to the application and enforcement of the DSA in that Member State, unless the Member State has assigned certain specific tasks or sectors to other competent authorities.
In Ireland, the Digital Services Coordinator will be Coimisiún na Meán, the Media Commission.
Discovery
The process where each party to an action discloses to each other on affidavit all documents in their posession, custody or power that are relevant to the proceedings.
Domicile
In legal terms, domicile is the place where a person has a fixed and permanent home and to which, where the person is absent from that place, they have the intention of returning.
Due Diligence
The process of investigation or audit of documents which underpin a company or organisation before a business sale transaction.
Duty of Candour
A legal obligation to be open and honest about any mistakes or errors that may have occurred in a professional setting. Read our insight on Duty of Candour in Public Law Proceedings.
Duty of Care
A duty of care, in the context of negligence, is the obligation that the law places on a person to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm. Breaching this duty of care will result in a finding of negligence. This breach of duty then must be shown to be causally connected to the injuries for liability to be imposed.
E
Environmental Impact Assessment
An Environmental Impact Assessment is conducted by the competent authority in order to ensure that potential significant environmental effects of certain types of development are considered in advance of a decision on planning permission. The competent authority for the planning process is the planning authority or An Bord Pleanála, depending on the specific process.
If significant environmental effects are predicted, measures can be proposed to reduce, avoid or prevent negative impacts.
ESG
ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. These are the three central factors in measuring the sustainability and ethical impact of an investment in a company. This concept is gaining significant traction, as it provides a comprehensive way to evaluate the long-term viability and ethical considerations of companies' operations.
Ex gratia
Describing something done or given as a favour rather than a legal obligation.
Execution Order
A court order granted in respect of a debt. The claimant may use this order to recover the debt owed through enforcement procedures.
F
Fiduciary
A person or entity that holds a position of trust and responsibility for the benefit of others, such as a trustee or executor. The general rule is that a person in a fiduciary position is not entitled to make a profit and he is not allowed to put himself in a position where his interest and his duty conflict.
FOI / AIE Requests
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request is a request for access to record(s) made under the Freedom of Information Act 2014, as amended (the FOI Act). Section 11 of the FOI Act grants a statutory right of access for any person, on request, to record(s) held by an FOI body.
This statutory right is subject to certain exceptions. As outlined in Section 6, FOI bodies include:
- Government departments and statutory bodies, and
- Other bodies in receipt of funding from the State
An Access to Information on the Environment (AIE) request is a request for access to environmental information made under the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007- 2018 (the AIE Regulations).
Force Majeure
An event or circumstance, such as war, natural disaster, or pandemics, that is beyond the control of the parties to a contract and excuses them from performing their obligations.
Foreign Direct Investment Screening
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Screening is a procedure that allows the State to assess and investigate foreign investments. It also lets the State authorise, set conditions for, or prohibit these investments. The decision is based on various security and public order criteria.
G
Green Leases
Leases that incorporate environmental sustainability or performance requirements and goals.
Green Loans
Green Loans are a form of sustainable lending. They require the borrower to use the proceeds of the loan instrument to finance or re-finance, in whole or in part, new and/or existing eligible green projects.
H
Holding Company
A company that controls another company usually by owning more than half of its shares.
I
Indemnity
Protection or security against a loss or liability.
Injunction
Injunctions in Irish law are versatile and powerful legal tools, crucial for ensuring justice and fairness in various legal disputes.
Insolvency
The state of ceasing to pay one's debts in the ordinary course of business or being unable to pay one's debts as they become due. Learn about our Insolvency and Restructuring expertise.
Inter Partes
Between the parties to a legal proceeding or action.
J
Judicial Review
Judicial review is a court procedure that allows individuals and corporates to challenge decisions or omissions of public bodies. The process is used when public bodies exercise, or don’t exercise, their public law functions, rather than when they operate in the private law sphere, eg, in breaching a contract.
L
Land Value Sharing
A system in which a portion of the increase in value of land is shared between the land owner and the government or local authority. Read our related content:
Lease
A legal agreement in which a landlord grants a tenant the right to occupy a property in exchange for rent.
A commercial lease is a contract between a landlord and a business tenant for the use of commercial property. Commercial leases are specifically for non-residential, business purposes.
Liability
Legal responsibility or accountability for an act or omission, or the amount owed.
Litigation
The process of taking legal action or pursuing a legal dispute in court, by parties who are known as litigants. Learn about our dispute resolution expertise.
M
Mediation
A voluntary process of dispute resolution where an independent third party assists the parties to the dispute to reach an agreement to resolve the dispute.
Merger
A process by national law where two or more companies or business entities combine into a single entity by operation of law. Learn about our Mergers & Acquisitions expertise.
Mitigation of Damages
Mitigation of damages refers to the steps that a party takes to act reasonably to minimise or reduce the amount of damages that they may be seeking to recover as part of a claim. It is a principle in Irish contract law and in tort law whereby a claimant cannot recover damages from a defendant for losses which the claimant could reasonably have avoided. This is because the loss is regarded as flowing not from the defendant's wrong but from the claimant's unreasonable behaviour.
N
Negligence
The breach of a legal duty of care by act or omission, which a reasonable person would not have done in the circumstances and where damage is caused to the party to whom the duty is owed.
O
Opinion
A judge's written explanation of the decision of the court.
P
Plaintiff
A person who brings a legal action against another.
Preliminary references
The preliminary reference procedure is a tool of dialogue between the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and national courts in EU Member States. They result in a ruling by the CJEU on matters of interpretation of EU law to be applied in national court proceedings, where necessary.
Privacy Enhancing Technologies
Privacy Enhancing Technologies or PETs are a broad set of tools and methods aimed at providing ways to build products and functionality while protecting the privacy of users’ data. PETs include methods such as end-to-end encryption and anonymisation.
Product Liability
Product liability refers to the legal responsibility imposed on a manufacturer, distributor, or seller for producing or selling a defective product that causes injury or harm to a consumer.
Product Recall
A product recall is a set of measures taken to retrieve an unsafe product that has been supplied or made available to consumers. Product recalls are one of a number of corrective actions that can be taken for products that are deemed to be unsafe. Recalls differ from other corrective actions like product withdrawals. Product withdrawals are where further units of the product in question are withdrawn from the supply chain, without the need for retrieval of products already sold to consumers.
Protected Disclosure
Protected disclsure is known as whistleblowing. This is the act of disclosing information by a worker about illegal or unethical conduct or practices within an organisation or public body that comes to the worker’s attention in the course of their work. (Also see: Whistleblowing)
Public Procurement
Public procurement relates to the purchase of goods, services and/or works by public bodies, bodies governed by public law and entities operating in the utilities sector (contracting authorities).
Q
Qualifying Investor Alternative Investment Fund (QIAIF)
A Qualifying Investor Alternative Investment Fund (QIAIF) is a regulated investment fund vehicle which is authorised and regulated by the Central Bank.
R
Redundancy
A situation where an employee is dismissed from their job due to the complete or partial closing down of their place of employment, or due to a decrease in the employer's requirements for employees of their kind and qualifications. Read our related content:
Remote Working
Remote working is an arrangement whereby some or all the of the work ordinarily carried out by an employee is done remotely. This could be, for example, at the employee’s home or another location that is not the employer’s office.
Retail Investor Alternative Investment Fund (RIAIF)
A RIAIF is an alternative investment fund (AIF) authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland and which may be marketed to retail investors. An AIF is a type of collective investing where funds are raised from a number of investors with a view to investing them in accordance with a defined investment policy.
S
SEAR
The Central Bank (Individual Accountability Framework) Act 2023 provides for the first Individual Accountability Framework (IAF) in Irish financial regulation. The Senior Executive Accountability Regime (SEAR) is a key pillar requiring in-scope firms to set out clearly and fully where responsibility and decision-making lie within the firm’s senior management.
Shareholders' Agreement
A shareholders’ agreement is a contract which creates rights and obligations for shareholders beyond the basic rights in company law or in a company’s constitution.
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV): a legal entity that is created for a specific purpose or transaction, such as a limited partnership, trust, or corporation. Learn about our SPV expertise.
Strategic Development Zones
Strategic Development Zones, sometimes referred to ask SDZs, were established in the Planning and Development Act 2000. SDZs are areas of land designated by the Government for development that is considered to be of social or economic importance. This development can be residential, commercial or industrial in nature.
T
Trade Dress
Trade dress is a US trade mark law reference which refers to the characteristics of the visual appearance of a product or its packaging that signifies the source of the product to consumers.
Trade mark
Trade marks are badges of origin used in connection with goods and services. They serve to distinguish those of one undertaking from those of another manufacturer, business or provider.
In Ireland, trade marks can be registered or unregistered.
Trademark Licence
A legal agreement that allows a person or company to use a registered trademark in exchange for payment or other consideration.
TUPE
Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations are a set of employment laws that protect the rights and benefits of employees when a business or undertaking is transferred from one employer to another.
Turbary Rights
The right to cut peat or turf for fuel from the land of another.
U
Undertaking
A promise or pledge which can be enforced by law.
Unfair Dismissal
A situation in which an employee is dismissed from their job and, having regard for all the circumstances, without substantial grounds justifying the dismissal.
V
Vacant Possession
The typical basis on which a seller or tenant must deliver possession of a property to a buyer or landlord and, in general terms, means that the property is free of any occupiers, items or third party interests.
Vacant Site Levy
A tax that is imposed on the owners of vacant or idle land which is entered on the Vacant Sites Register under the Urban Regeneration and Housing Act 2015 (as amended).
Vicarious Liability
Where one person is legally responsible for the acts of another person. An example would be that an employer is normally vicariously liable for the acts of its employee.
VLOEs
VLOEs stands for Very Large Online Search Engines.
VLOPs
VLOPs stands for Very Large Online Platforms.
VSPS
VSPS stands for video sharing platform services.
W
Warranties
Promises or guarantees from one party to another as to the state of affairs subject to the contract or agreement. Breach of warranty will only give rise to a successful claim in damages if the claiming party can prove breach and quantifiable loss.
Whistleblowing
The act of disclosing information by a worker about illegal or unethical conduct or practices within an organisation or public body that comes to the worker’s attention in the course of their work. Whistleblowing is known as a “protected disclosure” under relevant Irish legislation.
Without Prejudice
A phrase that is used to indicate that a written or oral communication, made by a party in a civil action, is made without prejudice to the rights or interests of the parties involved and cannot be used as evidence against the party making them.
Z
Zoning
The act of designating land into "zones", reserved for different purposes, such as residential or commercial development. Each of these zones has a set of restrictions for new development that differs from other zones.