Dr Mary Redmond b.1951 d. 2015: Fellow 1981 Hon Fellow 2004. She was a corporate lawyer, academic and founder of a number of charities, including the Irish Hospice Foundation and the Wheel, Dr Mary Redmond has died, aged 64. Widely regarded as possessing one of the finest minds of her generation, she began teaching law at University College Dublin (UCD) when she was just 19 years old.
When she was conferred with an honorary Doctor in Laws (LL.D) by chancellor Mary Robinson in Trinity College Dublin last June, the citation divided her career into into three spheres – her academic achievements, corporate life and charitable activities.
She moved from UCD to study at both Oxford and Cambridge universities and was awarded a doctorate from Cambridge where she was a fellow from 1981, being made an honorary fellow in 2004. She wrote key textbooks, including one on dismissal law which was the bible for fellow lawyers and practitioners for many years.
On her return to Ireland in the mid-1980s, she resumed her own legal practice but subsequently merged it with law firm Arthur Cox. She became a consultant to the company, advising clients such as Aer Lingus and Ryanair.
In the corporate world, she was a deputy governor of the Bank of Ireland, a member of the board of Smurfit, a member of the RTÉ Authority, a director of Campbell Bewleys and a board member of Royal Liver Insurance. She also served consecutive terms on the Labour Relations Commission.
She was well known for her social entrepreneurship. It was the long illness of her late father Seán which brought to her attention the shortage of hospice space. In 1985, she set up the Irish Hospice Foundation which established St Francis Hospice in Raheny, only the second hospice available at that time. The Hospice Foundation is now the leader of the voluntary sector in hospice care.
