www.kingsinns.ie/website/prospective_students/lawyerlinguist.htmCumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí
The Honorable Society of King's Inns
Preparatory course for Irish speakers who wish to apply for lawyer-linguist positions in the European institutions
The aim of the course
As a result of Irish having attained status as an official language of the European Union, the European institutions will be recruiting lawyer-linguists in the years ahead who have an excellent level of competency in Irish. The positions will be available in Brussels - in the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the Council of the European Union - with excellent salaries and work conditions. The main responsibility of those working as lawyer-linguists will be to examine draft laws which have been translated to Irish in relation to legal and linguistic accuracy.
The aim of this course, which is being run by King's Inns in conjunction with Gaelchultúr Teoranta, is to prepare the participants for the entrance exams which will take place in the future in order to fill the above-mentioned vacancies.
Important note: The course providers, King's Inns and Gaelchultúr Teoranta, cannot guarantee that participants will gain positions as lawyer-linguists on completion of this training course.
Course dates and venue
There will be a total of 14 weeks' tuition provided during this training course.
The schedule is given below.
8 June - 7 August (Part 1 of the course)
10 - 21 August (Reading weeks)
24 August - 3 October (Part 2 of the course, end of course exam)
Participants will attend a three-hour class (9.30 a.m. - 12.30 p.m.) every day, Monday to Friday. They will have an opportunity to do some of their homework online. It is not advisable to undertake another course while attending this training course or to work on a part-time basis.
Entry requirements
This course will be suitable for those who have a law degree or a professional legal qualification (BL or Solr), as well as a good standard of spoken and written Irish (grade A in the honours Irish paper in the Leaving Certificate, for example). Applicants must also have good computer skills.
All applicants will be required to undergo a language assessment test and the results of this assessment will be taken into consideration when places are being allocated on the course. This assessment, in which the focus will be on accuracy in Irish, will take place between 12.00 - 1.00 p.m. on Saturday, 23 May in King's Inns.
Deadline for applications
Applications must be received by King's Inns by 4.00 p.m. on Friday, 8 May 2009.
Two former participants
Here are the views of two students who have attended the preparatory course:
Órla Ní Riain
'I had a good standard of Irish from the Leaving Certificate but there were quite a few aspects of grammar that I was not familiar with. I managed to add greatly to my language skills during the course in King's Inns and to learn translation skills for the first time. I work in the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg now and I'm really enjoying the job. I intend spending some time working in Brussels in the future as well.'
Séamus Howard
'I was always interested in Irish and I wanted to get an opportunity to work through the medium of the language. I managed to attain a high standard of grammar during the course [in King's Inns] and I now have a one-year contract working as a lawyer-linguist in the Council of Europe. The work is challenging but I'm confident that I'll succeed in learning all the skills necessary to work in this area on a long-term basis.'
All classes will be held in King's Inns, Henrietta Street, Dublin 1.
Fee and subsistence stipend
This project is being funded by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and participants will not be required to pay a course fee. A subsistence stipend of €300 per week (based on attendance) will be paid to those who attend the course. There will also be an accommodation allowance for those who do not normally live in Dublin and who must move to the city in order to attend the course.
Additional information
If you wish to receive further information or a copy of the application form, please contact Tom Macdonald in King's Inns. The application form may also be downloaded from the King's Inns website.
Email: tom.macdonald@kingsinns.ie
Postal address: Tom Macdonald,
Dean of the School of Law,
The Honorable Society of King's Inns,
Henrietta Street,
Dublin 1
Website: www.kingsinns.ie
