Law Lines

Law Lines is the story of courtroom artists, who are the public’s eyes for some of the most important moments in history. Artists that for centuries have huddled on wooden benches, pencils and pens dashing across blank sheets of paper, capturing the drama in one of the few places cameras still cannot go. Law Lines is told both in the present and past. Anchoring the story is the study of the most renowned courtroom scene, High Treason, The Appeal of Roger Casement by Sir John Lavery. A painting that documents Roger Casement’s failed appeal against his death sentence for his role in the Easter Rising. The documentary reflects on the changes in media coverage of court cases. The tradition of the Court Artist has given Ireland one of its most important historical documents – a tradition that still continues today, but we don’t know for how long.

Law Lines was funded by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, with the Television License Fee.

First Broadcast: 16th July 2016