The second volume of the definitive political history of Northern Ireland. This landmark synthesis of political science and historical institutionalism is a detailed study of antagonistic ethnic majoritarianism. Northern Ireland was coercively created through a contested partition in 1920. Subsequently Great Britain compelled Sinn F?in's leaders to rescind the declaration of an Irish Republic, remain within the British Empire, and grant the Belfast Parliament the right to secede. If it did so, a commission would consider modifying the new border. The outcome, however, was the formation of two insecure regimes, North and South, both of which experienced civil war, while the boundary commission was subverted. In the North a control system organized the new majority behind a dominant party that won all elections to the Belfast parliament until its abolition in 1972. The Ulster Unionist Party successfully disorganized Northern nationalists and Catholics. Bolstered by the 'Specials,' a militia created from the Ulster Volunteer Force, this system displayed a pathological version of the Westminster model of democracy, which may reproduce one-party dominance, and enforce national, ethnic, religious, and cultural discrimination. How the Unionist elite improvised this control regime, and why it collapsed under the impact of a civil rights movement in the 1960s, take center-stage in this second volume of A Treatise on Northern Ireland. The North's trajectory is paired and compared with the Irish Free State's incremental decolonization and restoration of a Republic. Irish state-building, however, took place at the expense of the limited prospect of persuading Ulster Protestants that Irish reunification was in their interests, or consistent with their identities. Northern Ireland was placed under British direct rule in 1972 while counter-insurgency practices applied elsewhere in its diminishing empire were deployed from 1969 with disastrous consequences. On January 1 1973, however, the UK and Ireland joined the then European Economic Community. Many hoped that would help end conflict in and over Northern Ireland. Such hopes were premature. Northern Ireland appeared locked in a stalemate of political violence punctuated by failed political initiatives.

This textbook presents an engaging and thorough examination of the law in Northern Ireland. It guides students through the evolution of law-making, the legislative process, courts, and case law and presents a clear overview of the fundamental rules and principles of international law, public law, criminal law, and private law. It contextualises the myriad legal institutions operating in the jurisdiction, sets out how criminal and civil proceedings work in practice, and provides useful information on how people become lawyers, what lawyers actually do once they become qualified, and how the legal system is funded. The appendices set out sample sources of law so that readers can familiarise themselves with what is involved in handling legal documents. This edition has been updated following recent legal developments in Northern Ireland including the 'New Decade, New Approach' agreement of 2020 and the different elements of the power-sharing government, such as the proposed Languages Bill and the Northern Ireland (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Bill. It explains the effect of Brexit, in particular the new concept of 'retained EU law' and the effect of the Ireland / Northern Ireland Protocol to the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement. Setting out the implications of the recent UK-wide reviews of administrative law and the Human Rights Act for Northern Ireland, the book examines the work of the shadow Civil Justice Council and Family Justice Board and looks at the latest developments in the reform of abortion law. It explores new Assembly legislation that addresses the use of committal proceedings in criminal cases, the protection afforded to victims of domestic violence, and the rights of other victims, for example in relation to compensation for victims and survivors of the troubles and the appointment of an interim Victims of Crime Commissioner.

With special reference to the experience of Britain and Germany, this book examines the dilemma faced by constitutional governments in trying to draft anti-terrorist laws while preserving civil liberties.

Volume VII covers a period of major significance in Ireland's history: the division of Ireland and the eventual establishment of the Irish Republic.