Diarmuid O'Donovan:Diarmuid O'Donovan who has died aged 69, was a highly respected barrister and later High Court judge whose warm personality and generosity endeared him to many of his colleagues in a demanding profession.
The large attendance at his funeral of fellow judges and others from the legal world testified to the esteem and affection in which he was held.
Former colleagues spoke of how he could combine a huge workload with an ability to relax and enliven any company he was in. There was admiration at how he coped with serious health problems during his 10 years on the bench during which he presided over some high profile cases, notably the 43-day trial of John Gilligan in the Special Criminal Court.
Diarmuid O'Donovan was born in Dublin on August 4th, 1937. His father, Donough, was chief State solicitor. His secondary education was at St Mary's College, Rathmines, were he played on the senior cup team. He kept close connections with the past pupils' club, St Mary's, for the rest of his life. He also spent a year at Coláiste na Rinne, Dungarvan, Co Waterford.
Between 1955 and 1959 he studied for a Bachelor in Civil Law degree at University College Dublin, and for his barrister degree at the King's Inns. After being called to the Bar he began to practise on the Midlands Circuit but also did part-time lecturing in legal subjects at the College of Retail Distribution in Dublin. He married Ann McMahon from Limerick in 1961 and they had three sons.
Diarmuid soon established a reputation on the Midlands Circuit for hard work and skilful pleading. A former colleague recalled how he acted as a State prosecutor in two of the five counties on the circuit and as a defence counsel in the three others.
"He was equally effective in both roles which helps explain why he was to be such a good judge." In 1974 he became a senior counsel and built up a reputation for expertise in personal injuries cases. But he continued to take on criminal cases as well. He was especially proud of winning a case before the Supreme Court for the acquittal of a man who had confessed to a murder after 22 hours of interrogation.
On a trip in 1995, for a legal convention to Australia where he was a member of the Bar of New South Wales, he was asked in a radio interview about his views on the upcoming divorce referendum in Ireland. He said he thought it would be carried although it would probably be opposed by "a majority of my generation in their late 50s". He also thought the wording was not simple enough and would "open a legal minefield and perhaps it will work for the benefit of the legal profession". He feared that divorce would lead to more marriage break-ups as "people won't work as hard at keeping their marriages together because they will have a way out which they didn't have previously".
In 1996 he was appointed to the High Court. This involved a large drop in earnings as he had built up a flourishing practice. It also meant serving for stints as the senior judge in the Special Criminal Court, where IRA members were usually tried. A bar colleague said that working in a non-jury court was probably difficult for Diarmuid O'Donovan, who had "a strong notion of civil liberties and the right to trial by a jury of peers" but he "also had a strong sense of duty".
He presided as senior judge over the trial of John Gilligan in 2001 for the murder of journalist Veronica Guerin. This involved 43 days of hearings and huge media attention. Gilligan was acquitted of the murder charge but sentenced to a total of 172 years on 11 charges of importing cannabis resulting in a prison term of 28 years. Mr Justice O'Donovan said that he had "grave suspicions" about Gilligan's involvement in the murder of Ms Guerin but the uncorroborated evidence of former criminal associates was not enough to convict.
Serving on the Special Criminal Court meant measures had to be taken for his personal security but he tried not to let that interfere with a gregarious social life. He played golf at the Grange where he had been a captain. He was also a former captain of the Bar Association Golf Society and attended its annual dinner the night before he died. He also enjoyed opera. He performed in the production of Trial by Jurystarring some eminent judges and barristers which did a short tour around the circuit.
His wife, Ann, died in 2001. Some years later he married a former barrister colleague, Sara Moorhead. He is survived by his sons: Derry, Donough and David; his brothers, Donough, Barry, Fergus and Ciaran.
Diarmuid O'Donovan; born August 4th, 1937; died January 20th, 2007.