The most senior legal figure in the UK could soon face questioning in a Belfast courtroom, it emerged yesterday.
An application is due to be made in the Northern Ireland High Court today to cross-examine the Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg.
He is a respondent in an application for judicial review brought by two barristers, Mr Seamus Treacy and Mr Barry Macdonald, over a controversial declaration to "well and truly serve Queen Elizabeth 11". Their refusal to make the declaration on the ground that it discriminates against them as nationalists has prevented them taking up their appointments as QCs.
The barristers want the Lord Chancellor to adopt an alternative declaration omitting any reference to the queen, which has been approved by their representative body, the Bar Council.
Earlier yesterday Mr Justice Kerr refused on legal grounds to admit affidavits sworn on behalf of the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice, Sir Robert Carswell, who is also a respondent.
The judge said the Lord Chief Justice should himself have sworn an affidavit, instead of his legal secretary, who was not intimately involved in the decision to retain the impugned declaration.
He said he would admit an affidavit sworn by the head of the court service on behalf of the Lord Chancellor on the ground it was a departmental decision. Counsel for the Lord Chancellor said this was not the case as the decision about the declaration was entirely his own without any advice from civil servants.
This prompted Mr Justice Kerr to say he was "driven to conclude" that the Lord Chancellor's averments should be struck out.
Mr Ronnie Weatherup QC, for both respondents, asked for leave to file a personal affidavit by the Lord Chancellor. He said no application was being made in respect of the Lord Chief Justice.
Mr Michael Lavery QC, for the two barristers, said he would almost certainly be applying for leave to cross-examine the Lord Chancellor.
Mr Justice Kerr adjourned the hearing until this morning.