18 IRISH AMERICAN NEWS January 2006Healy LawBy Martin J. Healy, Jr.Senior PartnerTh<strong>is</strong> <strong>is</strong> the next of a series of columns on how the law can impact yourlife. Each month we will focus on various aspects of the law relatingto personal injuries, those that happen both on-the-job and otherw<strong>is</strong>e,including m<strong>is</strong>haps which occur in driving vehicles, using products andreceiving medical care. The column will also respond to legal questionsrelating to personal injury that are sent to us.The Healy Law Firm <strong>is</strong> compr<strong>is</strong>ed of eight trial attorneys, two of whomare from Ireland. We are located downtown at 111 West WashingtonStreet, Suite 1425, Chicago, Illino<strong>is</strong> 60602 (800-922-4500 or 312-977-0100). www.HealyLawFirm.com. The firm concentrates in therepresentation of seriously injured victims of all types of accidents.Library at the Ir<strong>is</strong>h <strong>American</strong>Heritage Center OpensAfter many years of volunteerwork and fundra<strong>is</strong>ing, theLibrary at the Ir<strong>is</strong>h <strong>American</strong>Heritage Center opened on Sunday,December 11, 2005, withhundreds in attendance.The fundra<strong>is</strong>ing efforts beganin 1994 with a small committeeincluding Tom Boyle andJohn Fitzgerald. It spanned thesupportive presidencies of JohnO’Malley, the late Nora Murphy,Mike Hamman, Chuck Kinneyand Patrick Bloom.It also spawned three majorfundra<strong>is</strong>ing dinners with specialperformances by Phil Coulterand Ir<strong>is</strong>h Tenor, John McDermott.The galas were chaired andemceed by the Honorable NeilHartigan, Assessor Jim Houlihan,Channel 7’s Joel Daly, Jim Sloan,Jerry Gleason and Bill Mitchell.Just about every phase of theconstruction of the Library wasadvanced through the tireless effortsof volunteers at the Center,under the expert leadership ofAmbrose Kelly. The Library willhouse the collective Ir<strong>is</strong>h knowledgefrom the past and make itavailable for generations into theDine Downtown on the Riverat your Downtown Ir<strong>is</strong>h Pub!UNDER NEW OWNERSHIPAVAILABLE FOR PRIVATE PARTIESWhen you think of a downtown Ir<strong>is</strong>h barthinkfuture. It <strong>is</strong> truly an outstandingIr<strong>is</strong>h Library. There are bookson almost every Ir<strong>is</strong>h subject,fiction and non-fiction, an adultand a special children’s section,books on tape and videos. TheLibrary also offers an opportunityto study ancient aspects ofIr<strong>is</strong>h h<strong>is</strong>tory.The Brehon LawsFrom an attorney’s viewpoint,an example of such a study couldrelate to one of the most interestingfeatures of early Ir<strong>is</strong>h society,a remarkable system of societalself-regulation known as the BrehonLaws.Research on Brehon Lawswould indicate that long before theViking, the Norman or the AngloSaxon invaded its shores, Irelandhad developed its own unique andwell-defined way of life. EarlyIr<strong>is</strong>h society laid great emphas<strong>is</strong>on d<strong>is</strong>tinctions of rank and profession.The application of the lawwas conditioned on one’s status.The Brehon Laws derive theirname from ‘brithem’ in oldGaelic or ‘breitheamh’ whichmeans judge in the modern Ir<strong>is</strong>hlegal system. Accordingly, theBrehon Laws are literally judgemadelaws. The Brehon Lawjudges were divided into threegrades. The lowest was allowedto decide cases pertaining tocraftsmen. Next in line was thejudge known to be competent intraditional law and poetry. Themost esteemed of the judicial categoriescompr<strong>is</strong>ed those learnedin the traditional law and poetry,and also canon law. Each tuath,or petty kingdom had its ownbreithem who was appointed bythe king. The judges’ fees were,in some cases, calculated as onetwelfthof the amount at <strong>is</strong>suebetween the parties.While the laws focused onprotection of person and property,unusual offences, involving socialmores of the time, included refusalof hospitality, violation of protectionand satire. Satirical attacksmight include mocking a person’sappearance or physical condition,and could result in a fine. Anyoneinterested in ancient Ir<strong>is</strong>h systemsof law or other aspects of Ir<strong>is</strong>hantiquity will have an abundantsource of materials at the Library.And on non-law related subjects,Ireland also has such a colorfulh<strong>is</strong>tory. The new Library willprovide the research tools toexplore its interesting past, fromancient to modern, and all otherthings “Ir<strong>is</strong>h.”The Library contains volumesby James Joyce, Samuel Beckett,William B. Yeats, Oscar Wilde andGeorge Bernard Shaw, for thosewith an appetite for tackling theseworldwide Ir<strong>is</strong>h literary giants.Books have been donated byvarious individuals over the pasttwenty years including some rarevolumes of Thomas Moore’s poetryand music from the late 19thCentury, kindly donated by TomSTOP IN. I CAN HELP YOU DETERMINE IF YOU’RE ON THE RIGHT TRACKOR NEED TO SAVE MORE FOR YOUR RETIREMENT.P.S. Notary Public availableJames McLaughlin11801 Southwest HwyPalos Heights(708) 923-9890Allstate Life Insurance Company, Home Office, Northbrook, IL. Securities offered by Personal Financial Representatives throughAllstate Financial Services, LLC. Reg<strong>is</strong>tered Broker-Dealer. Member NASD, SIPC. Main Office: 2920 South 84th Street, Lincoln, NE68506. 877-525-5727. © 2004 Allstate Insurance Company.Boyle. Chicago native, FinleyPeter Dunne, <strong>is</strong> well representedfor those interested in followingthe adventures of h<strong>is</strong> famous protagon<strong>is</strong>tMr. Dooley. The above<strong>is</strong> a mere snap shot of the collectionavailable at the Center, andlibrarian, Peg Reid, will be happyto ass<strong>is</strong>t you with your search forthe hard-to-find volumes fromour Celtic past.On a personal note, I want tothank the Officers and Membersof the Board of the Ir<strong>is</strong>h <strong>American</strong>Heritage Center for recognizingmy parents, Martin Healy, Sr. ofSwinford, County Mayo and MaryHenneghan Healy of Tourmakeady,County Mayo, in connection withthe Library.The Library will welcome v<strong>is</strong>itorsafter the first of the year.By: Martin Healy, Jr., TerenceGeoghegan, Partners, HealyLaw FirmTerence GeogheganLearn LatinBenedict XVI encouraged theteaching of Latin, especially toyoung people, with the help ofnew methodologies. BenedictXVI said that the Latinitas Foundationmust see to it that Latincontinues to be part of the dailylife of the Church, so that understandingof many of its treasureswill not be lost.Consider signing up for “PainlessLatin,” Chicagoland’s premiernon-credit Latin languageprogram. No prereqs, no quizzes,no pressure - just fun with otherLatin-curious types. Perfect foradults and students. Studiesconducted by the EducationalTesting Service show that Latinstudents cons<strong>is</strong>tently outperformall other students on the verbalportion of the Scholastic AssessmentTest (SAT).Classes are held Thursdayevenings, January 26 throughApril 20, 2006 (no class March16) at North Park University3225 West Foster Avenue Chicago,IL 60625 in the Chicagocampus. Each session <strong>is</strong> made upof twelve-80 minute classes andcosts $150. For more informationcall (847) 256-8460 or e-mailhibernius@comcast.net.
January 2006 IRISH AMERICAN NEWS 19The Tavern onMaple StreetDue to be publ<strong>is</strong>hed February2006, The Tavern on Maple Street <strong>is</strong>full of Ir<strong>is</strong>h wit and gentle humor andin keeping with Owens’ trademarkquirky Belfast tales. Jack and LilyBeaumont are the owners of the tavernon Maple Street, a quaint Victorianpub at the end of a cobblestone path.It’s a quiet place untouched by themodern world making it a favoriteamong the locals. However, th<strong>is</strong> localtreasure <strong>is</strong> threatened when a propertydeveloper want to demol<strong>is</strong>h the tavernand build a shopping mall. But there’sa secret about the Tavern that once it’sd<strong>is</strong>covered will redefine the meaningof love, friendship and family in themost surpr<strong>is</strong>ing ways.Sharon Owens was born in Omagh,Northern Ireland and moved to Belfastin 1988 to study illustration at the ArtCollege. Owens still lives in Belfastwith her husband and their daughter.http://us.penguingroup.comby Sharon Owens GP Putnam’s Sons;hardcover $22.95; ISBN: 0-399-15343-8WWII Memorial TourThe Association of Sons andDaughters of WWII Veterans willlead a group to England and Franceduring April 2006 to commemoratethe 62nd Anniversary of these h<strong>is</strong>toricalevents; D-Day landings, the Battlefor Normandy and the drive throughFrance to Bastogne.The itinerary will include London,Portsmouth, Cherbourg, OMAHAand UTAH beaches, Caen, St. MereEgl<strong>is</strong>e, Caretan, Argentan, Fala<strong>is</strong>e andPar<strong>is</strong>. A memorial service will be heldat the <strong>American</strong> Military Cemetery atColleville Sur Mer in France.Rock ShadowWideAwake Press has recently publ<strong>is</strong>hedMáirín Diamond’s second collectionof poetry titled Rock Shadowwhich <strong>is</strong> a celebration of nature, peopleand places. Many of the fifty-sixpoems evoke the atmosphere of theWest of Ireland - the sea, the landscapeand the drama of the changing lightthrough the four seasons. Some of thepoems deal with love, loss, emigration,For information call Sy Canton atthe Association (561) 865-8495 orsend inquiries to 5121 B Nesting Way,Delray Beach, FL 33484.grief and death. Rock Shadow alsoseeks to record something of Ireland’straditional culture and way of life,increasingly under threat.Born in Renvyle, Co. GalwayMáirín Diamond studied literatureand philosophy at the University ofV<strong>is</strong>it us at ....Sussex and now lives in Dublin.Rock Shadow has not been widelyd<strong>is</strong>tributed yet. For a copy, sendyour address and a cheque or postalorder for $12.50 to Máirín Diamond,69 Bath Ave,Sandymount, Dublin 4.011-353 1 6602366shamrock importsMaureen O’Looney,Serving You For Over35 Years Now!3150 N. Laramie, Chicago 773-286-6866
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