‘Rough’ figure on Enoch Burke fines above €268,000, judge indicates

By Cillian Sherlock, Press Association

A judge is to rule next week on potentially hundreds of thousands of euros in fines accrued by dismissed teacher Enoch Burke.

The fines have arisen from breaches of court directions ordering him not to trespass at Wilson’s Hospital School.

The High Court heard on Wednesday the board of management of the Co Westmeath school had put the level of fines at €452,100 – while a judge’s “rough” calculations on “fairer” criteria landed at €268,600.

The final judgment is due to be made next week.

The former history and German teacher has been engaged in a high-profile legal dispute with the school since 2022.

He was suspended following incidents arising from a request from the school’s then-principal to address a student by a new name and pronoun, and later dismissed from his position.

Burke has repeatedly argued the direction was unconstitutional and went against his right to express his religious beliefs.

He has spent more than 700 days in prison over different periods of detention after he was found to have violated court orders instructing him not to trespass at the school – and judges have also made orders relating to fines for such breaches.

On Wednesday, Rosemary Mallon, for the school’s board of management, told the High Court it had calculated a total figure of about €452,100  in fines.

This was based on orders relating to the number of days Burke refused to purge his contempt of court and the different level of fine which have applied over the past four years – which had increased from €700 to €1,400 and €2,000 per day following subsequent orders from judges.

She said the school had taken a conservative approach to calculating the figure as there had been a lack of clarity over a change of personnel throughout that period.

However, Justice Brian Cregan took issue with the calculations and said he did not believe it was the intent of the orders to include school holidays and weekends.

He said Burke could only trespass at the school on days it was sitting and it was the “import” of the orders that he would be fined for breaches of court orders by trespassing.

Outlining the school’s figures, Mallon said a fine of €23,800 was previously fixed for a period between January 27th and March 1st, 2023.

This was calculated at 34 days on a €700 rate – which would include weekends and holidays.

Mallon said the next period related to March 2nd and May 19th, 2023 – amounting €55,300 for a total of 79 days.

This would put the total fines for the year at €79,100.

Justice Cregan said he was “reluctant” to amend the first 23,800 fine but asked the school to recalculate excluding holidays and weekends.

On the next period from March to May in 2023, the judge said he had arrived at an approximate figure of 28,000 when his exclusions for weekends and holidays were considered.

There were no fines for 2024, the court heard.

Mallon calculated fines between February 21st, 2025, and September 3rd at €225,000 – in light of an increase in the rate of the fine.

However, the judge argued the increased rate had been in effect since January 6th and said that, on his “rough calculation”, the fine should total €212,800 between January and November of last year.

The court also heard there were two further days in January of this year that Burke attended the school, which would have been after a €2,000 rate was ordered.

Including the €23,800 that the judge was “reluctant” to change but had asked the school to examine, his “rough” calculations add up to €268,600.

Justice Cregan asked the school to recalculate its figures excluding school holidays and days Burke was in court.

He said this “should yield a more accurate figure and a fairer figure” for Burke.

Mallon said the school was “acutely aware of the significant sums in these fines regardless of how they are calculated”.

Burke, who appeared by videolink from Castlerea Prison, said the only relevant period of calculation was the “four long years that the court has remained silent” on issues relating to his freedom of religious expression relating to not using the “they” pronoun.

The judge told him he was a “highly experienced litigant” who “must understand” the court deals with issues put in front of them.

He said Burke had previously brought a counter-claim against the school which would have been the “critical point” to argue his constitutional case, but said he had instead committed repeated breaches of court rulings and failed to reappear.

He said the matter had been struck out because he did not prosecute his counter-claim.

He said he had been repeatedly telling Burke that: “If you want to bring a constitutional case, bring a constitutional case and then the court will deal with that matter – but to date you have failed to do so.”

During the hearing, the court also heard Burke is no longer receiving a salary from the Department of Education and had received his final payslip.

However, the court was told Burke was challenging this.

Justice Cregan said he is also considering making an order preventing Dr Isaac Burke, Martina Burke, and Ammi Burke from attending the proceedings in person and instead limiting them to remote attendance.

He told Burke to tell them they could make further submissions before his decision next week.

Justice Cregan also gave Burke three opportunities to give an undertaking not to trespass at the school.

Burke again questioned whether the court would deal with the issue of the “they pronoun”.

He said he had “done nothing wrong” and described himself as a “teacher of German and history at Wilson’s Hospital School”.

Justice Cregan said he had given Burke opportunities to purge his contempt and adjourned the matter until next Wednesday.

On the issue of Burke’s ongoing imprisonment, the judge asked Mallon for the school’s view.

She said it had no desire for Burke to be in prison but said it had a “real apprehension” that he would “trespass yet again” after the summer break.

She said it appeared at this moment in time that the only way to prevent that was “unfortunately through his imprisonment”.

The judge said he would reflect on the matters over the next week and give a judgment at 10am on Wednesday.