The man convicted of murdering Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane could be freed from prison less than three years after being jailed for 22 years.
The North's Sentence Review Commission is conducting a hearing in Maghaberry Prison in Co Antrim to decide whether Ken Barrett should be freed early.
Barrett was given a life sentence for murder in September 2004 after admitting his role in the 1989 murder.
Because he was being held initially in a prison in England he was told he did not qualify for early release under the terms of the Belfast Agreement, which said anyone convicted of a paramilitary crime committed before its signing in 1998 could be released.
Barrett, who had been living in England prior to his conviction, was transferred to Maghaberry in February last year and is now eligible to be considered for release under the Agreement, although release is not automatic.
The Sentence Review Commission is today expected to conclude a three-day hearing into Barrett's application and is likely to rule in seven to 10 days whether he can be released.
It is understood that sensitive intelligence information will be put before the Commission before the hearing is finished. Commissioners will only sanction release if they are satisfied Barrett no longer has connections with loyalist paramilitaries and poses no threat to the public.
The man who admitted his involvement in the killing of Pat Finucane — he was shot dead in front of his family in their north Belfast house — has been kept largely in solitary confinement since his transfer to Maghaberry because of fears for his safety.
The Finucane murder has become one of the most controversial of the Troubles amid allegations of security force collusion. The British government has been pressured to hold a public inquiry. However, the decision to hold the inquiry under the terms of the controversial Inquiries Act has prompted family members to say they will have nothing to do with it.
They are concerned the Act could lead to a cover-up and argue it gives the British government control over what can be disclosed. They have urged judges around the world not to take on the inquiry post. Leading legal figures, including Lord Saville who conducted the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, have condemned the Act and its use.