Solicitors and barristers in Cork have paid tribute to Mr Justice Paul Carney ahead of his retirement next month at the age of 72.
It will be the last time the High Court judge will sit in Cork ahead of his retirement.
Solicitor Frank Buttimer, on behalf of the Southern Law Association, said while no-one is irreplaceable Mr Justice Carney is the exception to the rule.
He brought, he said, justice to the people and to the regions. Mr Buttimer said he did not envy whoever had to fill the judge's shoes.
Father of the Cork Bar Don McCarthy said they were particularly thankful to him for bringing the Central Criminal Court to Cork and Kerry and wished him a very happy retirement.
Senior Counsel Brendan Nix said that in the "entire history of the Bar, there has never been anyone like you".
He said Mr Justice Carney's retirement is "very much the end of an empire", and recalled the judge "embracing" technology to address a jury from his hospital bed.
Mr Nix remarked that he felt it was outrageous that he was retiring.
At the end of their addresses, Mr Justice Carney remarked that there "was nothing voluntary" about his retirement.
The Central Criminal Court is due to sit in Cork for three weeks.
