Tributes were paid to District Court Judge Dympna Cusack today following her death at the weekend.
Judge Cusack had been ill for some time. Her funeral takes place tomorrow after 10 am Mass in the Church of St Therese, Mount Merrion, going to Shanganagh Cemetery.
Judge Cusack was a dental nurse and home maker until her mid-30s when she returned to education and undertook studies in the Kings Inns. She was called to the Bar in 1986. She was a well known family law practitioner and was heavily involved in the activities of the legal community.
She served for two years on the Bar Council and was for six years a member of the Education Committee of Kings Inns. She was a member of the Refugees Appeals Commission for three years and from 1998 she served for six years as the vice chair of the Employment Appeals Tribunal.
She was made a judge of the District Court in December 2006.
She was remembered in the family law courts today where Judge Conal Gibbons was joined by five other judges, courts staff and members of the legal profession in paying their respects to Judge Cusack.
Judge Gibbons said she was a star given too short a time to shine. As she had come to the Bar late she brought life's experiences with her, to her work and then to her role as a judge, he said.
Speaking on behalf of the Courts Service, Elisha D'Arcy expressed sympathy to Judge Cusack's husband Paul and her three children.