In a judgment which could have far reaching legal and policital ramifications, four Co Tyrone men were cleared of membership of the "Real IRA after a judge ruled that the dissident group is not a proscribed organisation.
In his judgment, handed down today in Belfast Crown Court Mr Justice Girvan held "that the Real Irish Republican Army is not a proscribed organisation for the purposes of Section 3 of the Terrorism Act 2000".
Mr Justice Girvan said under the section an organisation is proscribed, only if it is listed under Schedule 2 of the Act or operates under the same name as a listed organisation.
However, the judge said that while the schedule listed the IRA: "Schedule 2 of the Act does not include any organisation called or known as the Real Irish Republican Army".
Although acquitted of membership, the four men are still accused of conspiracy to murder and possession of a rocket launcher in February 2002.
The suspects are Mr Donald Mullan (33) from Firmount Park, Dungannon, Mr Sean Dillon (27) of Roughan Way and Mr Kevin Murphy (33) of Altmore Park, both Coalisland, and 26-year-old Mr Brendan O'Connor of Cavanoneill Road, Pomeroy.
The ruling rules out the possibility of any member of the dissident group being convicted solely of membership of the RIRA.
Logically the ruling also precludes anyone being convicted of membership of the Continunity IRA as this dissident group is also not listed under Schedule 2 of the Terrorism Act.
While prosecutions for membership of the two organisations may now have been ruled out in Northern Ireland, in the Republic of Ireland, such prosecutions and convictions continue after the South's Supreme Court threw out a similar legal argument.
The Department of Justice in Dublin pointed out how all alleged republican terrorists tried for offences against the State are classified as members of Oglaigh na hEireann - Irish for the IRA.
Today's ruling stunned Mr Michael Gallagher, whose son Aiden was among 29 people killed in the Omagh bombing. "This is an organisation that's hell-bent on creating death and devastation. It just leaves you without words that something like this can happen," he said.
On Tuesday a former director of operations of the RIRA, Liam Campbell, who is also being sued by the families of the Omagh bombing was jailed for eight years by the Special Criminal Court in Dublin after the court heard from gardai that he was a member of the RIRA.