Niall Farrell is the Managing Partner of the firm which was founded by his father Mr. Patrick Farrell in 1976. Niall qualified as a Solicitor in 1988 having studied at University College Dublin.
Niall is also a notary public which is a public official appointed by the Chief Justice primarily to certify and authenticate documents for use abroad.
He practiced in London initially where he worked in the areas of personal injuries claims, business disputes, family law and serious criminal cases. He is a qualified UK solicitor as well as an Irish Solicitor.
Niall was a member of the Council of the Law Society of Ireland for many years and has been chairman of many of its committees. Niall has been Chairman of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, a committee which is appointed by the President of the High Court to deal with serious complaints against Solicitors. He was also a member of the Incorporated Council for Law Reporting in Ireland which produces the official record of Court Judgments. He was a member of the Courts Martial Rules Committee and chairs Mental Health Tribunals for the Mental Health Commission. In addition, he has been an adjudicator in disputes brought before the Private Residential Tenancies Board and has chaired many Garda disciplinary hearings.
Niall has written articles for newspapers and has appeared on national radio and television. He has been a director of a number of charities.
Niall’s special areas of interest are:
Medical Negligence
Niall has considerable experience in medical negligence cases. He has acted in cases involving medical negligence in both public and private facilities. Most people receive a very good standard of care when they are finally admitted to hospital and no medical procedure is completely risk free. However, accidents will sometimes happen and clients want access to experienced advice so they can get a proper explanation of what happened and if appropriate, compensation.
Legal issues affecting the elderly
A significant part of Niall’s time is spent on cases involving the Elderly. He advises elderly clients on Wills, Enduring Powers of Attorney, managing their assets, property issues and family arrangements.
Great care and patience is needed to ensure that elderly clients have made sensible provision for their legal affairs and in a way which makes legal sense and helps maintain good family relations.
There can often be friction between children and Niall helps his elderly clients organise their affairs in a way which will have the best chance of ensuring good relations between family members in the future.
He advises on the Fair Deal Scheme and the property issues surrounding it.
Wardship Law
He advises families where a person is no longer able to look after their affairs and where because they have no Enduring Power of Attorney in place and there are legal/financial issues, may need to be made a Ward of Court. In those cases, the Wards of Court Office (under the supervision of the President of the High Court), look after their affairs.
Niall acts in cases where a person has been made a Ward of Court. In these cases, he works to protect the interest of the Ward and ensure that their assets are protected for their benefit.
Probate Litigation
Niall is experienced in probate and inheritance disputes, having been involved in many of these cases since he qualified. He has acted for executors in estates where there have been claims against the estate.
He also acts for clients bringing claims against an estate. These might relate to a failure of the deceased to provide properly for his children, disputes regarding the validity of wills or disputes regarding the meaning of wills.
The firm has extensive experience in these types of cases, having acted in the Supreme Court in one of the main Irish cases regarding the interpretation of Wills in 1978 .
Here are some of the cases in which Niall acted:
- He acted in successfully suing an international aircraft manufacturer arising from an aircraft accident in which two people died. This involved instructing American air accident investigators and issuing proceedings in the American and Irish courts. He also sued the state authorities regarding the obligations of their air accident investigators.
- He acted in suing an American computer manufacturer regarding faulty hardware in which allegations were made that the user and/or his software were at fault.
- He has acted in medical negligence cases where clients acquired a severe infection further to an operation.
- He acted for a client in Australia who felt that his father in Ireland (where he grew up) had not properly provided for him in his will and recovered substantial compensation. Niall has acted in many cases like this.
- Niall has acted in quite a number of Wardship cases where his job is to ensure that the interests of a Ward of Court are protected. This has involved carrying out investigations to trace missing monies, issuing proceedings to recover them, managing properties and ensuring that Wards of Court are well looked after.
