James O'Connor (Irish lawyer)

Sir James O'Connor, PC (1 April 1872 – 29 December 1931) was an Irish barrister and judge. He was appointed Solicitor-General for Ireland in 1914, and Attorney-General for Ireland in 1917. He served briefly as a High Court judge, then as a Lord Justice of the Irish Court of Appeal from 1918 to his enforced retirement in 1924. After a period of practice at the English Bar he returned to Ireland and was admitted to practice as a solicitor, a decision which caused some controversy, and resulted in a leading judgement on the standard of professional conduct to be expected of a retired judge.

He was born in Wexford, the third son of Michael O'Connor, senior partner with a long-established solicitors firm, and was educated at Blackrock College He married Mary Keogh in 1897 He practised as a solicitor for a few years before being called to the Bar in 1900; he became King's Counsel in 1908. Within a few years he had built up a large practice and rose with remarkable speed: he was appointed Solicitor General at 42, Attorney General at 45 and a judge of the Court of Appeal at 46. He wrote a two volume work on Justices of the Peace (3rd edition 1925) which is still useful.

In January 1921, during the Irish War of Independence, Lord Justice O'Connor met informally in London with Sir Edward Carson and Father Michael O'Flanagan to discuss a peaceful solution to the conflict, but without success. Nearly a year later the Anglo-Irish Treaty was ratified by both sides.

His career was cut short by the Courts of Justice Act 1924 which abolished the High Court and Court of Appeal, and (with two exceptions) forced the judges of those Courts to retire, although they received generous compensation. Like many of his colleagues he moved to England, and was called to the Inner Bar there in 1925. Serious ill-health compelled him to give up practice. He returned to Ireland, where his health improved, at least in the short term, and his doctors advised him that return to legal practice would be beneficial to his health. He applied to be admitted (technically, re-admitted) as a solicitor, a move which caused controversy: in a landmark ruling, The Hon. Hugh Kennedy, S.C., the Chief Justice of the Irish Free State, held that, while in general such an application would be most improper, in the special circumstances O'Connor's application would be granted. He rejoined the family firm, but sadly the recovery in his health was short-lived and he died at 59.

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