How do character references work?

How do character references work?

From Behind the Story by RTÉ News

April 27, 2026 · 26 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the implications and workings of character references in court, highlighted by a recent case involving a former TD.

Character references in court have come back under the spotlight after former TD Jim Glennon issued a character reference for Daniel Ramamoorthy. Ramamoorthy was a former government adviser who was convicted of the sexual exploitation of a 13-year-old boy in 2017. RTÉ Legal Affairs Correspondent Órla O’Donnell discusses the details of the case, and why details of who gives character references are often not made public. Senior Counsel Lorcan Staines also talks about how character references can carry different weight depending on the case, and why he believes consistency should be brought in across different courts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

People in this episode

Host: Órla O’Donnell

Guest: Lorcan Staines

Topics covered

  • character references
  • court cases
  • legal affairs
  • public disclosure
  • judicial consistency

Keywords

  • character references
  • court
  • legal system
  • Jim Glennon
  • Daniel Ramamoorthy
  • Órla O’Donnell
  • Lorcan Staines

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: RTÉ News

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