Tributes have been paid to Patrick Kelly, the prominent Northern Irish solicitor who died after a crash in the Wicklow 200 sportive last Sunday week.
Mr Kelly suffered a crash near Ashford and while specialist brain and spinal injury medics battled to save his life, his death was confirmed last Thursday by the organisers of the sportive.
Mr Kelly, who was in his 60s, was admitted as a solicitor to the roll in 1985 and was a partner in the firm of McConnell Kelly before retiring earlier this year.
“I was deeply shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Pat,” said president of the Law Society of Northern Ireland, Brigid Napier. “I knew him for many years, and he was highly respected amongst his colleagues and clients alike for his professionalism.
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“His passing is tragic and will be felt by many who knew him as a gentleman within the legal profession. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Doreen, their sons Rory and Conor and his former colleagues at McConnell Kelly.”
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Members of the Northern Irish legal profession converged on court No 10 at the Laganside complex in Belfast to pay tribute to Mr Kelly.
District Judge Mark McGarrity said Mr Kelly had worked as a lawyer on many of the highest profile and most demanding criminal cases.
“Pat had an illustrious career and is acknowledged as being amongst the leading lawyers in the country,” he said. “For decades he exhibited the highest standards of professionalism and integrity as he served the community as a solicitor, and personally helped thousands of people when at their most desperate and vulnerable.
“He did all of this with an unrivalled ease and deftness because he was cool. Always in good humour, I struggle to think of a colleague who so conscientiously and consistently exhibited kindness, a calm temperament and class.”
Barrister Richard McConkey said Mr Kelly, a married man with two children, retired at the end of March and had been looking forward to spending more time with his family and riding his bike.
“He was as happy as we have ever seen him in his retirement,” he said. “It’s very rare to find somebody in this business that nobody has a bad word to say about, but I have never heard anybody say a bad word about Pat Kelly.”
