Medical Negligence & Access to Justice in Ireland Today 2026

9:00am–9:45am: Registration and refreshments

9:45am–9:50am: Chair’s welcome and introduction

• Speaker: Alannah McGurk BL

9:50am–10:30am: Medical negligence costs and the impact on the health service

• Speaker: Professor Gabrielle Colleran, President, Irish Hospital Consultants Association

10:30am–11:10am: Nervous shock and insights from Kinsella v Carter

• Speaker: Jonathan Kilfeather SC

11:10am–11:30am: Refreshment break

11:30am–12:10pm: Session TBC (speaker UK medical expert TBC)

12:10pm–12:50pm: Delays in diagnosis of hip dysplasia

• Speaker: Will Jones, Partner, Fieldfisher (London)

12:50pm–1:50pm: Lunch break

1:50pm–2:30pm: Why are so many people dying, or being seriously injured, in Irish hospitals?

• Speaker: Aideen McGarry, Solicitor, Cantillions Solicitors
• The role of the risk department in Irish hospitals — How it is supposed to work
• Case studies analysing the role and response of the risk department in the context of clinical negligence litigation
• What lessons can be learned

2:30pm–3:10pm: The benefits of case management in catastrophic injuries

• Speaker: Siobhan McSweeney, CEO, Registered Case Manager, Nursing Consultant, Expert Witness, MCS Case Management Limited

3:10pm–3:30pm: Refreshment break

3:30pm–4:10pm: Navigating the future of medical evidence: AI and medico-legal case strategy

• Speaker: Steve Fleming, Founder & CEO, Sidelight AI

4:10pm–4:15pm: Chair’s closing remarks

• Speaker: Alannah McGurk BL