UCD Ulysses Medal for Judge Síofra O'Leary, the first woman to serve as President of the European Court of Human Rights
Posted 6 December, 2024
Judge Síofra O'Leary received her UCD Ulysses Medal at a special ceremony during the December graduations Credit: Chris Bellew / Fennell Photography
Judge Síofra O'Leary, the first female President of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), and the first Irish person to serve in the role, has been awarded the UCD Ulysses Medal.
Inaugurated in 2005, as part of the University’s 150th anniversary celebrations, to highlight the ‘creative brilliance’ of its most famous alumnus, James Joyce, the Ulysses Medal is the highest honour that University College Dublin can bestow.
Previous recipients include the Godfather of AI, Professor Geoffrey Hinton (2024); Booker Prize winning Canadian novelist, Margaret Atwood (2018); and world leading philosopher and social theorist, Professor Jürgen Habermas (2010).
“This award recognises Judge Síofra O'Leary’s remarkable contribution to human rights law over the course of an illustrious career as a legal scholar, judge, and judicial statesperson,” said (opens in a new window)UCD President Professor Orla Feely.
“As the first Irish person, and first woman, to serve as president of the European Court of Human Rights, Síofra is a powerful role model for our students.”
“As a graduate of University College Dublin, the presenting of the UCD Ulysses Medal to Síofra also acts as a kind of homecoming. We are so very proud to be able to recognise Síofra with our highest honour,” she continued.
A graduate of University College Dublin and the European University Institute in Italy, Judge O'Leary spent years lecturing on EU law at a number of universities alongside working as a référendaire and chef de cabinet at the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Her next professional move in 2015 brought her from behind the scenes to the bench of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Borne of the ashes of the Second World War, the world’s first regional human rights court deals with alleged violations of the European Convention on Human Rights across the 46 Council of Europe states.
A strong voice for human rights, Judge O’Leary has been involved in many noteworthy judgments include a famous dissent in Ireland v UK (2018), where the ECHR refused to revise its 1978 ruling on whether the so-called ‘five techniques’ of interrogation used by British security forces’ during the conflict in Northern Ireland amounted to torture under Article 3 ECHR.
More typically, she led the Court in progressive directions, notably in its ground-breaking climate justice ruling Klimaseniorinnen.
“Future generations will bear an increasingly severe burden of the consequences of present failures and omissions to combat climate change,” she wrote in her leading judgment.
Delivering her citation, (opens in a new window)Professor Imelda Maher, UCD Sutherland School of Law, said Judge O’Leary has “truly excelled” during her time as ECHR President.
“The role of the President of the Court is onerous and public-facing. [They] must be both a judicial diplomat engaging with states and an independent voice for human rights.
“In this role, Judge O’Leary truly excelled. There is a resounding consensus amongst the human rights community on the commitment, gravitas, and strategic vision she displayed as President, befitting this challenging moment in European history.
“Her presidential speeches and writings are a wonderful resource – full of insight, a pan-European sensibility, and an urgent sense of the seriousness of the threats to human rights and democracy across Europe today.”
By: David Kearns, Digital Journalist / Media Officer, UCD University Relations
To contact the UCD News & Content Team, email: newsdesk@ucd.ie
