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Dr. David Prendergast
Assistant Prof in Comparative Law, Law

Biography

Dr David Prendergast is the Law School's Director of Postgraduate Teaching and Learning. He researches and teaches in jurisprudence (legal philosophy) and criminal law. David co-founded the Irish Jurisprudence Society and is a former co-editor of the Dublin University Law Journal and the Criminal Law and Practice Review. He received a Trinity Provost's Teaching Award (Early Career) in 2014. David's PhD provided a qualified defence of judicial review of electoral processes. His journal articles on substantive criminal law have been influential and cited in numerous academic texts and in judgments of the superior courts of Ireland. Current research involves investigating the structure of criminal liability, culpability, and criminal law defences. David has an LL.B. (First class) from Trinity College Dublin, an LL.M. (Distinction) from University College London and is a qualified, non-practising barrister. He worked as a legal researcher for the Law Reform Commission and was formerly Pathways to Law Liaison Officer with Trinity Access Programmes. He was formerly Director of Undergraduate Teaching and Learning and Deputy LLM Director in the Law School and is currently Director of Postgraduate Teaching and Learning.

Publications and Further Research Outputs

Peer-Reviewed Publications

David Prendergast, Handcuffs and justified force under section 19 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997, Irish Criminal Law Journal, 2023 Journal Article, 2023

David Prendergast, The Crime of Failing to Come Forward, Irish Jurist, 2023 Journal Article, 2023

David Prendergast, Police Powers and Reasonable Force, Irish Criminal Law Journal, 2022, p106 - 112 Journal Article, 2022

David Prendergast, The difference between recklessness and negligence, Criminal Theory Justice Blog, 2022, - Miscellaneous, 2022

David Prendergast, Judicial stewardship of the provocation defence in People (DPP) v McNamara, Irish Supreme Court Review, 3, 2021, p69 - 99 Journal Article, 2021

David Prendergast, Limiting Consent in Criminal Law: DPP v Brown [2018] IESC 67, Irish Supreme Court Review, 2, 2020, p135 - 154 Journal Article, 2020

David Prendergast, Recklessness Without the Risk, Criminal Law and Philosophy, 14, 2020, p31 - 50 Journal Article, 2020 URL

David Prendergast, Book Review: JJ Child and RA Duff, Criminal Law Reform Now, Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, 58, (4), 2019, p585 - 586 Review, 2019

David Prendergast, The judicial role in protecting democracy from populism, German Law Journal, 20, (2), 2019, p245 - 262 Journal Article, 2019

David Prendergast, Book Review: Justice, Mercy, and Caprice: Clemency and the Death Penalty in Ireland I. O'Donnell, Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, 57, (4), 2018, p604 - 607 Journal Article, 2018

David Prendergast, The presumption pertaining to murder mens rea in section 4(2) of the Criminal Justice Act 1964, Irish Jurist, (60), 2018, p167 - 179 Journal Article, 2018

David Prendergast, Constitutional Control of Vague Criminal Law, Dublin University Law Journal, 42, (2), 2018, p19 - 44 Journal Article, 2018

David Prendergast, A critical review of the Court of Appeal interpretation of self-defence in the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997, Irish Criminal Law Journal, 28, (3), 2018, p58 - 63 Journal Article, 2018

David Prendergast, Criminal Culpability and Sexual Offences Reform, Criminal Law and Practice Review, 2, 2018, p99 - 113 Journal Article, 2018

Article 16 of the Irish Constitution and Judicial Review of Electoral Processes in, editor(s)Laura Cahilane, James Gallen, Tom Hickey , Judges, Politics and The Constitution, United Kingdom, Manchester University Press, 2017, pp252 - 268, [David Prendergast] Book Chapter, 2017

CC v Ireland: the missing feminist judgment in, editor(s)Máiréad Enright, Julie McCandless, Aoife O'Donoghue , Northern / Irish Feminist Judgments: Judges' Troubles and the Gendered Politics of Identity, United Kingdom, Hart Publishing, 2017, pp566 - 579, [David Prendergast] Book Chapter, 2017

David Prendergast, Defensive Killing by Initial Aggressors: DPP v Barnes Revisited, Irish Jurist, 54, (2), 2015, p115 - 130 Journal Article, 2015

David Prendergast, The Conventionality of Constitutional Law, Dublin University Law Journal, 38, (2), 2015, p441 - 448 Journal Article, 2015

David Prendergast, Addressing uncertainty in the defences of self-defence, diminished responsibility, and provocation, Criminal Law and Practice Review, 1, (1), 2014, p21 - 35 Journal Article, 2014

David Prendergast, Gross negligence manslaughter in Irish law, Dublin University Law Journal, 37, (1), 2014, p267 - 277 Journal Article, 2014

David Prendergast, Vague offences and the High Court, Criminal Law and Practice Review, 1, (1), 2014, p153 - 156 Journal Article, 2014

David Prendergast, The Connection between Mental Disorder and the Act of Killing in the Defence of Diminished Responsibility, The Irish Jurist, 49, (1), 2013, p202 - 211 Journal Article, 2013

David Prendergast, Douglas v DPP and the Constitutional Requirement for Certainty in Criminal Law, The Irish Jurist, 50, (1), 2013, p235 - 243 Journal Article, 2013

David Prendergast, Strict Liability and the Presumption of Mens Rea after CC v Ireland, Irish Jurist, 46, 2011, p211 - 220 Journal Article, 2011

David Prendergast, The Constitutionality of Strict Liability Offences, Dublin University Law Journal, 33, 2011, p285 - 318 Journal Article, 2011

David Prendergast, By-elections and the filling of Dáil vacancies within a reasonable time - a note on Doherty v Ireland, Dublin University Law Journal, 34, 2011, p242 - 255 Journal Article, 2011

Non-Peer-Reviewed Publications

David Prendergast, The difference between recklessness and negligence, Gerald Gordon Seminar in Criminal Law, University of Glasgow, 6 June 2024, edited by James Chalmers, Fiona Leverick , 2024 Conference Paper, 2024

Matt Dyson(ed.), Oxford Meeting of the Anglo-German Criminal Law Dialogue Project, Comment on 'Self-Defence' by Alec Walen and Ingeborg Zerbes, University of Oxford, 20-21 September 2024, 2024 Proceedings of a Conference, 2024

David Prendergast, Book Review: The Criminal Law's Person, Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, 2023 Review, 2023

David Prendergast, The difference between recklessness and negligence in criminal law, Research seminar, Trinity College Dublin, 15 March 2023, 2023 Conference Paper, 2023

David Prendergast, The Right to Silence, Irish Jurisprudence Society, Maynooth University, 15 February 2023, 2023 Conference Paper, 2023

David Prendergast, What the relational self tells us about criminal law, UCD Book Symposium on Jonathan Herring's Law and the Relational Self (Cambridge University Press 2019), University College Dublin, 3-4 June 2022, edited by Christopher Cowley and Sarah Fulham-McQuillan , 2022 Conference Paper, 2022

David Prendergast, The difference between recklessness and negligence in criminal law, Roots of Responsibility-Varieties of Risk, Risk and Recklessness Workshop, UCL, 23-24 April 2021, edited by Claire Field , 2021 Conference Paper, 2021

Alan Eustace, Sarah Hamill, Andrea Mulligan, Public Health Law During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Ireland, COVID-19 LEGAL OBSERVATORY, School of Law, Trinity College Dublin, August, 2021 Report, 2021

David Prendergast, Book review: Core Concepts in Criminal Law Volume 1 (Ambos, Duff, Roberts, Weigend, eds), 1826, 2020, - Miscellaneous, 2020

David Prendergast, On relocating and refurbishing consent in sexual offences, Perspectives on Consent in Sexual Offences Workshop, Queen's University Belfast, 28 February 2020, edited by Eithne Dowds , 2020 Conference Paper, 2020

David Prendergast, Connecting Offence and Defence, Edinburgh Criminal Law Discussion Group Seminar, University of Edinburgh, 11 December 2019, edited by JP Fassnidge , 2019 Conference Paper, 2019

David Prendergast, Recklessness in Irish Criminal Law, TCD Law Lunchtime Research seminar, Trinity College Dublin, 16 October 2019, 2019 Conference Paper, 2019

David Prendergast, Limiting consent in criminal law: DPP v Brown [2018] IESC 67, Irish Supreme Court Review, Trinity College Dublin, 12 October 2019, edited by Eoin O'Dell , 2019 Conference Paper, 2019

David Prendergast, Criminal Law and Morality: the common architecture, Symposium on David O Brink's Fair Opportunity, Responsibility and Excuse, Somerville College, University of Oxford, 20 March 2019, edited by Anthony Skelton and Lisa Forsberg , 2019 Conference Paper, 2019

David Prendergast, CULPABILITY IN CARELESS DRIVING AND THE SO-CALLED "THIRD CATEGORY" OF CRIMINAL OFFENCE, Irish Law Times, 36, (4), 2018, p63 - 67 Journal Article, 2018

David Prendergast, Recent developments in criminal defences and mens rea: a retreat from subjectivism?, Criminal law: Recent trends and developments, Trinity College Dublin, 19 April, edited by Liz Heffernan , 2018 Conference Paper, 2018

David Prendergast, Reverse Burdens, Evidence/Criminal Procedure Workshop, Dublin City University, edited by Yvonne Daly , 2018 Conference Paper, 2018

David Prendergast, Challenges to the Centrality of Consent, Seminar, University of Surrey, 2018 Conference Paper, 2018

David Prendergast, Consent as a legal binary, School of Law lunchtime seminar series, Trinity College Dublin, November 2018, edited by Des Ryan , 2018 Conference Paper, 2018

David Prendergast, The constitutional control of vague criminal law, Constitution at 80, University of Limerick, 7 November 2017, edited by Laura Cahillane and David Kenny , 2017 Conference Paper, 2017

David Prendergast, Constitutional review of democratic processes, Popular Will, Electoral Democracy and the Courts, University of Padua, 16-17 November 2017, edited by Andrea Pin , 2017 Conference Paper, 2017

David Prendergast, CC v Ireland feminist judgment, Northern / Irish Feminist Judgments Project workshop: the embodied subject, Griffith College Dublin and UCD, 16-18 April 2015, edited by Enright, McAndless, O'Donoghue , 2015 Conference Paper, 2015

David Prendergast, Murder mens rea, Irish Association of Law Teachers Annual Conference, NUI Galway, November 2015, edited by Charles O'Mahony , 2015 Conference Paper, 2015

David Prendergast, Murder mens rea, Irish Association of Law Teachers Annual Conference, NUI Galway, 2015 Conference Paper, 2015

David Prendergast, Sexual Offences and Presumptive Wrongs, Legal and Political Theory Workshop, NUI Galway, 13 November 2015, edited by Danaher, Daly, Tourkochoriti , 2015 Conference Paper, 2015

David Prendergast, What is the test for self-defence in fatal cases?, Irish Law Times, 13, 2015, p213 - 218 Journal Article, 2015

David Prendergast, Self-defence in fatal cases, The Criminal Law Forum, King's Inns, Dublin, 5 April 2014, 2014 Conference Paper, 2014

David Kenny, David Prendergast, The independence of a meritorious elite: The government of judges and democracy, National Report for Ireland for the International Congress of Comparative Law in Vienna, July, 2014 Report, 2014

David Prendergast, DPP v Dunne and the criminal law's test for causing death, Irish Law Times, 17, 2014, p246 - 249 Journal Article, 2014

David Prendergast, Article 16 of the Irish Constitution and Judicial Review of Electoral Processes, Judges, Politics and the Irish Constitution, Dublin City University, 4 Sept 2014, 2014 Conference Paper, 2014

David Prendergast, Review of Eimear Spain, The Role of Emotions in Criminal Defences: Duress, Necessity and Lesser Evils, Review of The Role of Emotions in Criminal Defences: Duress, Necessity and Lesser Evils , Dublin University Law Journal, 36, 2013 Review, 2013

David Prendergast, The Differing Demands of Legality, Irish Society of Comparative Law Annual Conference 2013, NUI Galway, 24-25 May 2013, edited by Charles O'Mahony , 2013 Conference Paper, 2013

David Prendergast, Criminal Defences: Recent Developments, Criminal law Practice and Procedure Update Conference, Trinity College Dublin, 12 October 2013, edited by Ivana Bacik and Liz Heffernan , 2013 Conference Paper, 2013

David Prendergast, Democracy, Judicial Review, and Legal Scholarship, Irish Association of Law Teachers Annual Conference, Dublin, 16-18 November 2012, 2012 Conference Paper, 2012

David Prendergast, The case against judicial review of democratic procedures, Irish Society of Comparative Law Annual Conference 2011, University College Dublin, 2011 Conference Paper, 2011

David Prendergast, Review of Bill Kissane, New Beginnings: Constitutionalism and Democracy in Modern Ireland, Dublin University Law Journal, 34, 2011 Review, 2011

Law Reform Commission, Report on Inchoate Offences, 2010 Report, 2010

David Prendergast, Analysis of Doherty v Ireland (the Donegal by-election case), Trinity College Dublin Constitutional Law and Policy Group, 10 December 2010, 2010 Conference Paper, 2010

David Prendergast, Tensions in the Pursuit of Equality of Representation - Judicial Review of Electoral Constituencies, Centre for Criminal Justice and Human Rights Third Annual Postgraduate Conference, University College Cork, UCC, 30 April 2009, 2009 Conference Paper, 2009

David Prendergast, One Person, One Vote in Ireland and the United States, Inaugural Conference of the Irish Society of Comparative Law, University of Limerick, 27-28 February 2009, 2009 Conference Paper, 2009

David Prendergast, The Law Reform Commission's Consultation Paper on Inchoate Offences, International Society for the Reform of Criminal Law Annual Conference 2008, Dublin Castle, 11-15 July 2008, 2008 Conference Paper, 2008

Law Reform Commission, Consultation Paper on Inchoate Offences, (LRC CP 48 - 2008), 2008 Report, 2008

David Prendergast, Codifying Inchoate Offences, (2008) 26 Irish Law Times 134, 2008 Journal Article, 2008

David Prendergast, Normative Positivism, Irish Jurisprudence Society Workshop, Trinity College Dublin, 22 November 2007, 2007 Conference Paper, 2007

David Prendergast, Inchoate Liability and Glorifying Terrorism, Socio-Legal Studies Association Annual Conference, University of Kent, 3-5 April 2007, 2007 Conference Paper, 2007

Research Expertise

Description

Research interests: I am interested in legal theory as the sustained reflection on, investigation of, and creative analysis of how law works, that is, its distinctive contribution as a normative order that overlaps and links with other normative orders such as morality. Criminal law constitutes a primary focus for this theoretical reflection on law because it displays both transposition of moral norms as well as artificial regulatory norms. My research seeks to contribute to accurate description and deepened understanding; published papers to date have done so for criminal defences, strict liability, Mens Rea and culpability, legality, elements of criminal liability. I have also worked substantially on constitutional law and theory where it concerns the control of substantive criminal law and in other areas including judicial review and electoral processes.

Keywords

Constitutional law; Criminal law; criminal law theory; Jurisprudence; philosophy of criminal law

Recognition

Representations

Co-editor of the Dublin University Law Journal 2013

Anglo-German Dialogues on Criminal Law, member 2020

External Examiner, Law Society of Ireland 2017

Co-editor of the Criminal Law and Practice Review 2014

Editor, Irish Supreme Court Review 2024

Peer reviewer: journals include Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly, Legal Studies, Irish Jurist, Dublin University Law Journal, Cambridge Law Journal, Philosophia, Political Behaviour. 2014

Trinity School of Law's COVID-19 Law and Human Rights Observatory, member 2020

Association for Criminal Justice Research and Development Advisory Board member 2014

Irish Innocence Project Advisory Board member 2010

Awards and Honours

Provost's Teaching Award (early career) winner 2014

Shortlisted for Provost's Teaching Award 2013

TCD Postgraduate Studentship 2007

Sir Jack Jacob Prize for Civil Justice, UCL 2006

Memberships

Irish Jurisprudence Society 2007 – present

Irish Association of Law Teachers (IALT) 2012 – present

The Society for Applied Philosophy 2022 – present