Best one volume Irish law textbook?

Beechwoodspark

Does anyone have any suggestions for the best 1 volume Irish law text book that would cover the main areas of Irish law?

I see there are “nutshell” books available on particular areas of law but is there any text that is a comprehensive introduction in 1 volume?

Thanks in advance.

Hamerzan Sickles

It's pretty clear that you have no idea of what you are talking about. I don't mean this in a bad way but this question could only be asked by someone who has never touched the law before in an academic way.

I would advise you to not use "nutshells" - the vast majority of them are riddled with inaccuracies or simplified explanations that are not quite correct.

There is no "general volume textbook". Areas of law are very distinguished from each other (though they may overlap, such as contract law, property law and equity). You are sort of asking the equivalent of "is there a best 1 volume author for all of the greatest works of the western canon"? It just doesn't make sense.

That said, most textbooks are tedious to read. There's the most recent McDermott and McDermott Contract Law text book, and the McMahon and Binchy Tort Law textbook, and a few others that would be considered industry standard, but they are colossal and extremely dense. Most people learning law would consult these books as references for things they have already learned rather than use them for autodidactic exercise.

If you are not studying them in college, I think the most succinct way to learn the law would be to get your hands on the eight FE1 manuals. They are much more accurate than the nutshells and contain the core elements of each of the standard industry textbooks on which they are based.

rightytighty

There’s also Byrne and McCutcheon on the Irish Legal System which gives a broad overview of the operation of law here, although your question isn’t clear as to what you hope to learn.

irishblessing

That first reply to you was very condescending. You may enjoy books by Terry Gorry, a solicitor with his own consulting firm. His book 'Employment Law in Ireland' covers all the main areas. It was updated in 2019. He also has an amazing website, employmentrightsireland.com. He is really great at giving factual information without being overly academic - "in a nutshell" is his style. Hope that helps.

randomchild

I agree that the first response was incredibly condescending and also factually incorrect. There are many such law books meant to give an overview of the area as an introduction. Principles of Irish Law by Brian Doolan was my starting off point to the subject (Solicitor practising for 10 years for context) and I would highly recommend you pick a copy if you can find one second hand (I dont think there is an up to date version of it, so feel free to grab an earlier volume. It wont have the most up to date law so don't take it as a bible).

On the usage of nutshells, I have to profess again that the first response is profoundly ignorant on the topic. I can attest that both the Constitutional and Real Property Law nutshells are absolute staples of any legal library and are as equally valuable to a novice as to a practitioner for the clear and easy way they explain their topics (far better than any manual you will get from a FE-1 prep course, which are highly overrated).