IT was with a genuine sense of warmth that members of the legal profession welcomed Judge Joanne Carroll as the region’s new district court judge last week.
‘Your reputation for fairness, common sense and empathy precedes you, and we know the district is in good hands,’ Mary Jo Crowley, the president of the West Cork Bar Association stated at the judge’s first sitting in Skibbereen.
Mary Jo said: ‘The work done in the district court touches people’s lives directly and deeply, and we are confident your approach will reflect both the seriousness of that responsibility and the humanity that it requires.’
With district courts in Bantry, Clonakilty, Skibbereen, Macroom and Bandon, the association president pointed out that each town ‘has its own character, but what unites them is a shared respect for justice, and a deep reliance on the courts to help maintain fairness and order in everyday life.’
Mary Jo said members of the association take great pride in supporting the work of the court in a way that reflects the values of the community they represent.
‘We look forward to working alongside you in that same spirit, and to supporting you and building a positive and cooperative relationship with you in the years ahead,’ she concluded.
It seemed fitting that it was a female president of the bar association who welcomed Judge Joanne Carroll because she will, forevermore, have the distinction of being the first female judge to preside over the district courts in West Cork.
Judge Carroll, who qualified as a barrister in 1992, and is a graduate of the King’s Inns, said: ‘I am very aware of the huge trust the government has placed in me in assigning me to the West Cork district court area.
‘I will do my best every day to vindicate that trust,’ she said. ‘I am absolutely committed to the administration of justice, and I will be doing my job without fear or favour.
‘I understand very well that my function is to serve the people of West Cork, each and every community, and that is what I plan to do to the best of my ability,’ she said.
Judge Carroll acknowledged the excellent work done by her predecessor Judge James McNulty, over the previous 19 years. She described him as ‘very hardworking, very able and very compassionate, a judge who served the people of West Cork extremely well.’
Judge Carroll said she was genuinely moved by the number of people, from every sector of the legal profession, who turned up to wish her well on her first day on the bench.
‘I am particularly pleased that Len MacCarthy, the chief clerk, is here in West Cork, and is here to oversee my transition into the West Cork District Court area.
‘Len is a very calm and able administrator with over 40 years of experience in the Courts Service. It is poignant for me because Len had worked with my dad,’ who was, of course, the late District Court Judge Bernard Carroll.
‘They enjoyed a good working relationship, and indeed a friendship, so I feel very blessed that Len is here to oversee the transition,’ she said.
