A new panel will have to be appointed to review teacher Enoch Burke’s dismissal from Wilson’s Hospital School, after an Irish judge struck out proceedings relating to the dispute.
The decision came during High Court proceedings in Dublin which saw Mr Burke and members of his family removed from the hearings by gardai due to ‘completely unacceptable’ and ‘absolutely disgraceful’ disruption.
The judge said a new appeal body should be constituted within two weeks and suggested it should sit throughout the week as he criticised its current Saturday-only operation as ‘ludicrous’.
Mr Burke had sought a temporary injunction against a Disciplinary Appeals Panel (DAP) body that was reviewing the decision to dismiss him from the school amid a long-running dispute.
Two members of the tripartite panel had resigned ahead of making a decision, while Mr Burke also objected to the third member sitting on the body who was a representative of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI).
Mr Burke had sought an injunction against the members of the DAP making any recommendation on his appeal or taking any further steps relating to the process.
He had also said the ‘refusal’ of Geraldine O’Brien, the ASTI representative, to resign was unfair and unreasonable, and said the manner in which the DAP had conducted the appeal was also unfair.
Legal representation for the DAP said Mr Burke had been provided with a letter stating Ms O’Brien and the other two members of the body would not and could not be part of any new panel.
Mr Burke challenged the position on the basis that Ms O’Brien had not resigned and argued the DAP was still in existence.
On Friday, Mr Justice Brian Cregan said the proceedings against the DAP were ‘moot’, stating it is ‘clear’ a new panel will have to be appointed without any of the previous members.
He also said Mr Burke had obtained the relief he had sought, not by order of the court but by the ‘facts on the ground.’
The judge said none of the named defendants could issue recommendations on the appeal, nor take any further steps.
Mr Justice Cregan struck out the proceedings, and ordered Mr Burke be liable for the day’s costs.
He also said he did not intend to make any order in favour of Mr Burke’s expenses.
Padraic Lyons SC, for the DAP, said Mr Burke may normally be entitled to expenses as a lay litigant.
However, Mr Cregan said: ‘We’re very far from normal here.’
It came after Mr Burke was removed from the court by gardai and returned to Mountjoy Prison after a warning from the judge about straying beyond acceptable behaviour.
He has been imprisoned at Mountjoy Prison over contempt of court relating to breaches of orders not to trespass at the school.
The long-running legal dispute between the board of management of the Co Westmeath school and Mr Burke stems from incidents over a request in 2022 from the school’s then-principal to address a student by a new name and pronoun.
Mr Burke, an Evangelical Christian who taught German and history at the school, has repeatedly argued that the direction was unconstitutional and went against his right to express his religious beliefs.
The court heard he remains on the payroll of the Department of Education.
As he interjected while Rosemary Mallon, the barrister for the board of management, was outlining proposals to constitute a new DAP, the judge ordered him to sit down.
When he did not sit down, Mr Justice Cregan directed gardai to return him to Mountjoy Prison amid opposition from members of his family.
As he was being escorted by gardai, Mr Burke accused the court of an ‘abuse of power’ and said: ‘This is absolutely disgraceful, I have a right to justice.’
His mother, Martina, questioned why Ms Mallon was allowed to speak and told the barrister she was a ‘foreign presence’ in the court as the family did not believe the board should have been a party to the hearing.
She, along with Mr Burke’s sister Ammi, were also escorted out of the court by gardai.
Noting Mr Burke’s objections to the ASTI, Ms Mallon said he had been told a new DAP could be formed with a representative of the Teachers Union of Ireland instead or with, his agreement, a representative from an independent body such as the Law Society, Bar Council or the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.
Ms Mallon was reading from a letter that had been sent to Mr Burke and he objected to this being read out in court.
It was at this point that Mr Burke did not follow Mr Justice Cregan’s order for him to sit down and he was returned to Mountjoy Prison.
During the resumed proceedings, the judge told Mr Burke, who was on videolink from prison, that his behaviour and that of his mother and sister was ‘absolutely disgraceful’ and ‘completely unacceptable’ in the court.
He added: ‘It is absolutely manifestly an abuse of process.’
His brother Isaac was also taken out of the court by gardai after interrupting proceedings.
Mr Lyons had argued the proceedings were moot as the appeal was not continuing following the resignations and that there could be no recommendation.
He said there would be no hearing or rehearing by any of the named defendants.
Representing the board of management, Ms Mallon said: ‘We just want to appoint a new DAP.’
Mr Burke had contended the proceedings were not moot as there were serious matters relating to breaches of natural justice and the ‘shambolic nature’ in which the DAP was run.
In particular he said there had been a denial of his right to conduct cross examination.
Mr Justice Cregan said matters relating to unfairness ‘fall away’ because a new panel will have to be appointed.
He criticised the conduct of Mr Burke, stating: ‘All you do is kick up and create a storm and delay the process.’
He later said: ‘You just bulldoze your way through every single judge in the country and refuse to accept any rulings of the court – it is just ridiculous.’
He also criticised Mr Burke for ‘disgraceful hypocrisy’ after he asked the judge to have the ‘good graces’ to let him to finish his appoint.
Mr Justice Cregan said: ‘That’s a little bit rich coming from you given that you and your family interrupted these proceedings.’
Mr Burke contended that he and his family had been treated disgracefully before being muted on the videolink.
The judge criticised the functioning of the DAP to date, with matters ongoing for three years.
He said Mr Burke had either been in jail or trespassing at the school during that time, both of which were ‘undesirable’.
Mr Justice Cregan said it was ‘ludicrous’ that the DAP only sat on Saturdays, adding that it should be able to sit throughout the week.
He said it was ‘imperative’ that relevant parties nominate new members to a DAP ‘expeditiously’, suggesting this should be within two weeks.
‘Mr Burke is languishing in jail on a contempt of court issue while parties only sit on Saturday – that’s completely undesirable.’
The judge also said the DAP should consider a stenographer because of the ‘fundamental divergence of views’ about what happened in affidavits.
On the suggestion that a Teachers’ Union of Ireland representative could be nominated, the judge said he would not express a view but added that he did not think the DAP should diverge from its processes and choose to pick someone from another body like the Law Society.