James MacGuill SC is a graduate of UCC. He was admitted to the roll of solicitors in 1986, gained a Diploma in Arbitration in 1991 and was appointed a Notary Public in 1996. He was appointed as a Senior Counsel in 2020. He practices in the private sector as a litigator with an emphasis on public law, especially criminal law.
He has chaired various committees of the Law Society of Ireland, to include the Criminal Law Committee and the Human Rights Committee. James was President of both the Law Society of
Ireland and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) and was also the Chair of its Criminal Law committee.
James has been nominated to serve on a number of Government working groups/task forces regarding Legal Aid, Jurisdiction of the Criminal Courts, National Crime Forum, Interviewing of Suspects, and served on the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board.