Courts / Tipperary / Report

'Deranged': ban on reporting previous jailing of Cahir O'Higgins is lifted

Date
2024-11-15

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Cahir

Summary

Cahir O'Higgins, a former criminal‑defence solicitor, was found guilty of theft and perverting the course of justice. The court allowed the previously imposed reporting ban on his earlier harassment and assault case to be lifted. O'Higgins had been convicted of assaulting fellow solicitor Stephen O'Mahony, including a 2021 incident in which he broke O'Mahony's nose. He was sentenced to 16 months' imprisonment, with the sentence deferred until September to allow him to close his practice. The judge described his conduct as "deranged", "thuggish", "base" and "despicable", noting the harassment stemmed from a professional rivalry. O'Higgins was granted leave to travel to Spain and to compete in the World Cycling Championships before his custodial term began. The case highlights the court's decision to lift the reporting restriction once the theft and perverting the course of justice trial concluded.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 'Deranged': ban on reporting previous jailing of Cahir O'Higgins is lifted. Charges or matters: one count of assault causing harm to fellow solicitor Stephen O'Mahony and to one count of harassing him over a period of time between June 25, 2020 and February 11, 2021; theft and perverting the course of justice offences, Mr O'Mahony resigned from his position in Cahir O'Higgins Solicitors, where he had worked for 11 years. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

June 25, 2020 Incident
February 11, 2021 Incident
December 2020 Incident
January 2021 Incident
July 22 Incident
February 2021 Incident
April 2020 Hearing Or Sentence
June 2020 Hearing Or Sentence
September 2020 Hearing Or Sentence
October 2020 Other
2024-11-15 Publication

Case subjects

Cahir O'Higgins

Convicted Person

Charges: one count of assault causing harm to fellow solicitor Stephen O'Mahony and to one count of harassing him over a period of time between June 25, 2020 and February 11, 2021; theft and perverting the course of justice offences, Mr O'Mahony resigned from his position in Cahir O'Higgins Solicitors, where he had worked for 11 years (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: He was sentenced to 16 months in jail by Judge Kenneth Connolly on July 22 this year for the harassment and assault charges, but this sentence was deferred until the end of September to allow O'Higgins to settle his affairs and shut down his solicitor practice – referred to in court as previously the most successful criminal practice in the country. The decision came in the wake of a scathing sentence ruling delivered by Judge Connolly, in which he described the various aspects of O'Higgins' behaviour as "deranged", "thuggish", "base" and "despicable". "The harassment arose from an irrational obsession deriving from the fact the two parties were in competition for the same work," the judge said, noting that this is a "natural element" of solicitor work that occurs "every day of the week in this building". "He chose to bully Mr O'Mahony out of the space he was occupying on a professional basis," Judge Connolly said. "Mr O'Higgins believed