Enoch Burke’s appeal against his dismissal by Wilson’s Hospital School concluded on Friday without the three panel members hearing from the teacher after he repeatedly interrupted proceedings and was removed from the hearing by prison officers.
Burke had been taken from Castlerea Prison to the Department of Education in Athlone for the hearing which is understood to have started about 10am. He was later returned to the prison.
It is normal for the appellant in such proceedings to present their case first but Burke instead took issue with the fact that Wilson’s Hospital was represented by a solicitor from Mason Hayes and Curran along with a barrister.
He is said to have been repeatedly disruptive as he took issue with school’s decision to be legally represented and the independent chair of the Disciplinary Appeal Panel (DAP), Claire Callanan, eventually requested that he be removed.
The other members of the DAP are joint managerial body nominee John Irwin and Teachers’ Union of Ireland representative Seamus Lahart. Burke is not a member of any teachers’ union but a union representative on such panels is standard practice.
The board of management’s representatives then presented its case in the absence of Burke who is said to have been offered the opportunity to return to the hearing if he gave a commitment to respect the proceedings. He was eventually returned to the room after the school’s legal team had concluded their case but is understood to have become disruptive again.
In a video posted afterwards on X, formerly Twitter, Isaac Burke confirmed his brother had been removed by prison officers after, he said, objections had been raised to the legal representation.
This, Isaac Burke said, was “totally contrary to the process provided for by the circular [Department regulation] which states it should be informal. It’s totally contrary to settled law in this area.”
He described the events as “scandalous”, saying: “It’s supposed to be informal … him on one side, the teacher, he chose to represent himself, facing the board of management, that’s what the circular says, the chairperson with a serving member of the board to help the chairperson on the other side.”
In a statement issued on Friday afternoon, fellow sibling Josiah Burke said that at a previous DAP hearing in December 2025, the panel had refused to allow lawyers to be present in the hearing room. The decision was confirmed in writing, he said, with the panel stating: “It is not the practice of the DAP to allow legal representation at oral hearings.”
The Department of Education was approached for comment.
Those familiar with the process say that, while the circular does state the proceeding are intended to be “informal”, there is no prohibition on legal representation for either side.
The circular specifically states “the teacher making the appeal is entitled, if he or she wishes, to make oral submissions to the panel either in person or through a representative, normally a serving teacher, a wholetime official/s of the union holding recognition for his or her grade or other such person as the panel agrees may be present for that purpose”.
It also states that where the panel meets to hear oral evidence, the teacher and their representatives are permitted to attend as well as the chair of the board of management “along with a serving member of the board, or principal, designated to assist the chair of the board of management”.
It goes on to state that “any other person whom the panel agrees may be present” can also attend.
It is understood that voluntary schools – privately owned and managed post-primary schools, usually under the patronage of an individual body such as a religious community, a charitable trust or a private charitable company – like Wilson’s Hospital are usually legally represented in such appeals.
There is an expectation among those familiar with the appeals process generally that, as Burke did not present his case on Friday, he is likely to be offered another chance to do so before the panel considers its decision.
The Irish Prison Service said it does not comment on operation matters.
