Madam, - Further to my letter of June 7th headed "Courtroom Deference", noting the use of the term "Milord" which is inimical to the courts of this Republic, I now find that the Circuit Court rules prescribe that "a judge shall be addressed in court by his title, and may be referred to in Irish as "An Chúirt" or in English as "The Court".
The rules of the superior courts prescribe similarly: "The judges of the Superior Courts shall be addressed in Irish or English by their respective titles and names, and may be referred to, in Irish, as "An Chúirt" or, in English, as "The Court".
The inegalitarian practice of many barristers of using terms such as "Milord" and "Your Worship" is a flagrant breach of these rules, and implies wrongly that justice is partly dependent upon degrees of toadying and fawning.
It is to be hoped that the our judges, King's Inns and the Courts' Service will begin to uphold these rules, and disallow obsequious servility in the courts of the Irish Republic where all citizens are equal before the law. - Yours, etc.,
SHANE O'DOHERTY, Idrone Terrace, Blackrock, Co Dublin.