Paul D Maier BL

I am a barrister at the Law Library in Dublin, Ireland, specialising in the law of work, labour and employment.

I appear for both employers and employees before the Circuit Court, High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Ireland. I regularly represent parties before Adjudication Officers of the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court. I provide legal advice and opinion to leading firms and organisations in Ireland.

In addition to my legal practice, I am committed to scholarship and teaching. I am a tutor at University College Dublin Sutherland School of Law in Torts, Company Law and Contract Law. I publish articles as often as possible, often collaborating with leading figures in the field. I provide weekly employment law case reviews for Legal Island, and I provide case reports for the Employment Law Reports. I am Treasurer of the Employment Bar Association.

From 2015 – 2021 I served as a national trade union official representing professionals in the Irish health service. During this time I undertook the Diploma in Legal Studies at the King’s Inns. I took the Barrister-at-Law Degree course full-time from 2021-22, and was called to the Bar in July 2022. I devilled for Desmond Ryan BL in my first year of practice.

Originally from New Jersey, I graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science with Honors in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University. I moved to Ireland after graduation and have remained since, proudly obtaining Irish citizenship by naturalisation in 2019.

Leon O’Connor v Engage People Recruitment ADJ-00040781 (July 24th 2023)

A Consultant Surgeon v A Hospital ADJ-00024543 (February 8th 2021)

University Hosptial Kerry v A Worker LCR21853 (December 11th 2018)

A Medical Consultant v A Hospital ADJ-00004020 (May 25th 2018)

Mercy University Hospital v A Doctor LCR21624 (November 30th 2017)

St Patrick’s Mental Health Services v Asma Ayyaz PWD1713 (May 25th 2017)

Viewpoints from the Bar of Ireland  – “20 Years Protecting Fixed-Term Employees: The Fixed-Term Work Act 2003” (with Cathy Smith SC) 14 July 2023

King’s Inns Law Review Volume IX – “Organisation of Working Time in the Digital Era” February 2020

Flexible Working and the Right to Disconnect – Winner of 2022 Employment Law Association of Ireland Student Video Competition.

This fifteen-minute video presentation addresses the question, “How should employment law change to ensure flexible working and the right to disconnect in a talent-driven market?”

In addressing that question I refer to:

– The need to transpose the Work-Life Balance Directive (now encompassed into the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill)
– The need for clarity on employee-led deviations from the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 under Section 4
– The practical challenges of employers fulfilling working time recording requirements under section 25 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 when employees are working remotely
– The conflict between the Code of Practice on the Right to Disconnect and the stricter requirements under the Working Time Directive with regard to disruptions during rest periods

Treasurer, Employment Bar Association, July 2023 – Present

Volunteer, Free Legal Advice Centres (FLAC), March 2023 – Present – Providing specialist employment law clinics on a monthly basis

Chairperson, Rathfarnham Concert Band Society, January 2017 – September 2018, awarded lifetime Honorary Membership of the Society for “exceptional services to the Society.”