Although Constitutional Law is primarily an academic subject, the FE-1 exam will require candidates to consider the way in which constitutional principles might apply to factual situations. As practitioners are most likely to encounter Constitutional Law in the context of litigation, there will be a number of problem questions on the paper.

Candidates will be expected to show knowledge and, crucially, understanding of the constitutional caselaw of the Irish courts. To this end, candidates should  demonstrate the ability to critically analyse, discuss and apply the principles of Irish Constitutional Law. It is recommended that candidates directly read the decisions of the courts rather than exclusively relying on secondary summaries. An up-to-date knowledge of the decisions of the Superior Courts will also be required. Areas of relatively recent consideration will be particularly important. The major topics (which are not exhaustive) include:

• Constitutional Interpretation
• Locus standi
• Judicial Review
• Justiciability
• Habeas corpus
• Separation of Powers
• Emergency Powers
• The President
• The Attorney General
• The election and referenda provisions
• Enumerated personal rights
• Unenumerated personal rights
• Socio-economic rights
• The Family
• The Courts and the administration of justice
• The Executive
• The Oireachtas
• Constitutional justice
• Consequences of a declaration of unconstitutionality
• The impact of the European Convention of Human Rights Act 2003 on constitutional issues.

LEGISLATIVE SOURCES
Candidates are permitted to take an unmarked copy of the Constitution into the examination

RECOMMENDED READING
Kelly: The Irish Constitution, 5th Edition, (2018), Bloomsbury Professional.
E. Carolan (ed.), Judicial Power in Ireland (2018), IPA.

SUPPLEMENTAL READING
E. Carolan (ed.), The Constitution of Ireland: Perspectives and Prospects (2012) Bloomsbury.
O. Doyle, Constitutional Law: Text, Cases and Materials, (2008) Clarus.
S. Egan, L. Thornton & J. Walsh, Ireland and the ECHR: 60 years and beyond (2014) Bloomsbury.
L. Cahillane, J. Gallen & T. Hickey, Judges, Politics and the Irish Constitution, (2017) Manchester University Press.
B. Dickson, The Irish Supreme Court (2019), Oxford University Press.