Judicial Conceptions of Prisoners' Rights in Ireland: an Emerging Field

This paper will discuss four themes. The first concerns judicial discussions of conditions of detention, secondly I will examine the development of the principles of procedural fairness in decisions on the use of separation or isolation of prisoners. I will then move to look at issues concerning foreign prisoners, and say a few words about conditions of detention in the immigration context. Finally, I will explore some of the barriers to a greater role for the Irish courts in the area of conditions of detention. I will speak from the experiences drawn from my research, but also from legal practice.