Gerard William Augustine Hogan,[1]MRIA (born 13 August 1958) is an Irish judge, lawyer and academic who has served as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland since October 2021. He previously served as Advocate General of the European Court of Justice from 2018 to 2021, a Judge of the Court of Appeal from 2014 to 2018 and a Judge of the High Court from 2010 to 2014. Hogan first worked as a barrister and lecturer in law specialising in constitutional and administrative law.
He was a law lecturer and fellow at Trinity College Dublin from 1982 to 2007.[19] He lectured on constitutional law, competition law and the law of tort.[20] He is regarded as "one of the foremost constitutional and administrative lawyers in Ireland".[21] He is the co-author of Administrative Law in Ireland and JM Kelly: The Irish Constitution, the core Irish legal texts in Irish administrative and constitutional law respectively.[22] He has also written a text on political violence and a book where he chronicled the origins of the Constitution of Ireland.[23]
During his career as a barrister he was involved in cases involving employment law,[24] habeas corpus,[25] immigration law,[26] judicial review,[27] company law,[28] and commercial law.[29]
He appeared for Katherine Zappone and Ann Louise Gilligan in Zappone v. Revenue Commissioners in the High Court and Miss D in her case related to the rights to travel abroad for an abortion.[30][31] He represented the State in the High Court and the Supreme Court in litigation that emerged following a court finding that an offence of unlawful carnal knowledge was unconstitutional.[32][33] In 2008, he acted for Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly in the Supreme Court who were contesting an action taken by families of victims of the Omagh bombing when they were refused access to books of evidence.[34]
He was the first barrister to appear in an Irish court without a wig, following the enactment of the Courts and Court Officers Act 1995.[40]
Throughout his career, he has been a member of committees and boards in areas requiring legal expertise. He chaired the Department of Justice and Equality's Balance in Criminal Law Review Group, and was a member of three other review groups: the Constitution Review Group, the Competition and Mergers Review Group and the Offences Against the State Acts Review Group. He was also a member of the Competition Authority's Advisory Panel and the Committee on Court Practice and Procedure.[14]
Judicial career
High Court
He was appointed a Judge of the High Court in 2010. Soon after his appointment, he held an emergency hearing in his home regarding a blood transfusion for a sick baby.[41] He was one of three judges who heard a case taken by Marie Fleming, seeking a right to die in 2012.[42] His reference to the European Court of Justice in 2014 regarding the International Safe Harbor Privacy Principles, resulted in a declaration by the Grand Chamber that the Safe Harbour Decision was invalid.[23]
Court of Appeal
He subsequently became a Judge of the Court of Appeal upon its establishment in October 2014.[15]
Advocate General of the European Court of Justice
In May 2018, he was nominated by the Government of Ireland for appointment as the Advocate General to the European Court of Justice.[43] His term began in October 2018 and would have expired in October 2024.[3]Anthony Collins was appointed in 2021 to complete his term following his appointment to the Supreme Court.[44] Hogan concluded his term on 7 October 2021.[45]
In one of his first opinions, on a reference from the French Conseil d'État, he found that Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 requires that products originating from Israeli-occupied territories should indicate if these products come from such a territory.[46] His opinion was followed by the Court of Justice.[47]
^"Supreme Court legal teams". The Irish Times. 5 April 1995. p. 5.
^"Equal Status Bill hearing is fixed for next month". The Irish Times. 13 May 1997.
^In the matter of Article 26 of the Constitution and in the matter of the Health (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2004, [2005 IESC 7] (Supreme Court of Ireland 16 February 2005).
^Broderick, Eugene (17 May 2017). "Acknowledgements". John Hearne : Architect of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland. Irish Academic Press. ISBN9781911024538. A special thank you to Mr Justice Gerard Hogan ... His wife, Karen Quirke, also gave help