Charles Casey (lawyer) explained

Charles Casey
Office:Judge of the High Court
Term Start:1 August 1951
Term End:12 June 1952
Nominator:Government of Ireland
Appointer:Seán T. O'Kelly
Order1:11th
Office1:Attorney General of Ireland
Taoiseach1:John A. Costello
Term Start1:21 April 1950
Term End1:12 June 1951
Predecessor1:Cecil Lavery
Successor1:Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh
Birth Date:21 September 1895
Birth Place:Dublin, Ireland
Death Place:Dublin, Ireland
Nationality:Irish
Party:Fine Gael
Spouse:Helen Hanlon
Children:8
Education:Castleknock College
Alma Mater:University College Dublin

Charles Casey (21 September 1895 – 11 February 1952) was an Irish judge and lawyer who served as a Judge of the High Court from 1951 to 1952 and Attorney General of Ireland from 1950 to 1951.

He was born in Dublin in 1895 to an affluent family, second son of Dr. Charles Casey and his wife Mary Genevieve Conran. He was educated at the O'Connell Schools and Castleknock College.[1] [2] During World War I he served in the 16th (Irish) Division. He was called to the Bar in 1923 and made a Senior Counsel in 1941. Taoiseach John A. Costello chose him as Attorney General in 1950 to replace Cecil Lavery. The following year he was made a judge of the High Court, but he died after only fifteen months on the Bench.[3]

He married in 1928 Helen Hanlon, who outlived him by many years, and they had eight children.[1]

Casey, like Lavery, continued to take private work while Attorney General, with the approval of Costello. He showed questionable judgment in appearing for a private party in Re Tilson, infants [1951] I.R. 1 since while still Attorney General he was required to urge the Supreme Court to interpret the Constitution in the way which suited his client's private interests. While it was never suggested he had acted improperly, such cases fully justify the present rule that the Attorney General takes no private cases. He was also unusual among Irish Attorneys General in acting as the Government's spokesman when it refused to introduce legislation on adoption, on the ground that such legislation would be contrary to Roman Catholic teaching.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Dempsey, Pauric J. "Charles Francis Casey" Dictionary of Irish Biography
  2. Web site: Charles F. Casey, class '13. KnockUnion.ie. en. 2020-01-13. 2020-01-13. https://web.archive.org/web/20200113195315/https://www.knockunion.ie/obituary/charles-f-casey-class-13-11150. live.
  3. Casey, James The Irish Law Officers Round Hall Sweet and Maxwell Dublin 1996