John Loyola Murray (27 June 1943 – 18 January 2023) was an Irish judge who served as

Chief Justice of Ireland The Chief Justice of Ireland ( ga, Príomh-Bhreitheamh na hÉireann) is the president of the Supreme Court of Ireland. The chief justice is the highest judicial office and most senior judge in Ireland. The role includes constitutional and admin ...

from 2004 to 2011, a Judge of the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

from 1999 to 2015, a Judge of the

European Court of Justice The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Unio ...

from 1992 to 1999 and as

Attorney General of Ireland The Attorney General of Ireland ( ga, An tArd-Aighne) is a constitutional officer who is the legal adviser to the Government and is therefore the chief law officer of the State. The attorney general is not a member of the Government but does pa ...

from August 1982 to December 1982 and 1987 to 1991.

Early career

Murray was born in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

on 27 June 1943. He was educated at Crescent College, Limerick, Rockwell College,

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named afte ...

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

, and the

Honorable Society of King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environment ...

. He was twice elected President of the Union of Students in Ireland in 1966/67. He qualified as a barrister in 1967 and had a successful law practice dealing with commercial, civil, and constitutional law.

Attorney General

Murray was

under the

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian ...

government from 17 August to 14 December 1982. The

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the offi ...

Charles Haughey Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...

, appointed him as Attorney General after his predecessor, Patrick Connolly, resigned abruptly over the GUBU scandal, when a murderer

Malcolm McArthur Malcolm Julian "Mannie" McArthur (30 July 1882 – 6 July 1961) was an Australian rugby union national representative rugby union player. He won a gold medal in rugby at the 1908 Summer Olympics. Rugby career McArthur's rugby career was pl ...

was arrested in Connolly's Dalkey flat. His next term in office as Attorney General extended from 11 March 1987 to 25 September 1991. In 1988, he refused to allow the extradition of Fr. Patrick Ryan to

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

on explosives charges dealing with the

Provisional IRA The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reunif ...

, on the basis that the trial he would be given would not be fair due to excessive media coverage and remarks made in

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

by the

British Prime Minister The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern ...

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

which were considered prejudicial.

Judicial career

In 1991, he was appointed a Judge of the

serving until 1999, when he was appointed to the Irish Supreme Court. Murray served on the Supreme Court from 1999. He was appointed

in 2004. In 2011, Chief Justice Murray became involved in controversy with the Government over a proposal to amend the Constitution to allow the remuneration of judges to be reduced in parallel to the remuneration of public servants in State employment. The criticisms of the Government's plans were contained in a 12-page critique by Chief Justice Murray, and the

President of the High Court The High Court ( ga, An Ard-Chúirt) of Ireland is a court which deals at first instance with the most serious and important civil and criminal cases. When sitting as a criminal court it is called the Central Criminal Court and sits with judg ...

Nicholas Kearns Nicholas Kearns (born 1946) is a retired Irish judge who served as President of the High Court from 2009 to 2015 and a Judge of the High Court from 1998 to 2015. He retired as President of the High Court on 19 December 2015. Early career K ...

, and published in the Court Services website, but subsequently redacted at the request of the Government. He retired as Chief Justice in 2011, though he remained a member of the Supreme Court until 2015.

Chancellor of the University of Limerick

Murray was appointed Chancellor of the

University of Limerick The University of Limerick (UL) ( ga, Ollscoil Luimnigh) is a Public university, public research university institution in Limerick, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Founded in 1972 as the National Institute for Higher Education, Limerick, it beca ...

(and so also Chairman of UL's Governing Authority) in 2013.

Telephone tapping inquiry

In January 2016, it was announced that the Minister for Justice and Equality had appointed Murray to conduct a review of the legislation allowing access to the phone records of journalists. Murray was asked to propose any legislative changes required, and to examine the legislation in other countries and examine best international practice in this area.

Personal life and death

Murray was married to Gabrielle Walsh, daughter of Brian Walsh, a former Supreme Court judge, described as "one of Ireland's greatest judges" and the "outstanding legal reforming mind of his generation" by Prof. John J. Lee. His brother, Michael D. Murray, is State Solicitor for Limerick City. Murray died on 18 January 2023, at the age of 79.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, John L. 1943 births 2023 deaths Lawyers from County Limerick People educated at Crescent College People educated at Rockwell College Alumni of University College Dublin Alumni of King's Inns Attorneys General of Ireland European Court of Justice judges Irish judges of international courts and tribunals Chief justices of Ireland Chancellors of the University of Limerick Grand Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg