Bill Shipsey SC, a former chair of Amnesty International Ireland, Monday urged Ireland to adopt a code of conduct for retired judges following a controversy surrounding the Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) Courts. Shipsey penned an op-ed in for the Irish Times suggesting that “rules of professional conduct should require retired judges to avoid any activities liable to comprise the dignity of the office or the maintenance of public confidence in the judicial system.”

On July 27, Ireland’s former Chief Justice Frank Clark and former President of the High Court of Ireland Peter Kelly were sworn into the DIFC Courts. Following their appointment, they faced criticism due to an identified pattern of severe and widespread human rights violations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Ireland has been critical of the UAE’s human rights record and critics believed the appointment of former Irish judges would damage Ireland’s status as a country that stands for the rule of law.

The former judges were also criticised due to potential bias that could arise for Irish companies conducting business in the UAE. Kelly serves on the the Law Reform Commission of Ireland, creating even more possible conflicts. Both judges resigned from their positions with the DIFC Courts following the backlash.

Following the controversy, Shipsey thinks that future Irish judicial appointees “should be subject to some code of conduct obligations that continue beyond their retirement even if the legal enforceability or sanctions open for a breach of that code post-retirement would or could raise legal and contractual difficulties.”