UN human rights experts have contacted the UK government over Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) authorisations to obtain phone data from solicitors Darragh Mackin and Peter Corrigan. The experts include Margaret Satterthwaite, UN special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, and Ana Brian Nougreres, UN special rapporteur on the right to privacy.

The authorisations took place in 2013. Mackin and Corrigan represented clients appealing convictions for the murder of PSNI officer Stephen Carroll in Craigavon in 2009. An independent report last September found the authorisations were based on flawed grounds.

PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher apologised to Mackin and Corrigan last September. The UN experts stated the PSNI actions may violate international standards on lawyers' rights to work without interference. They also noted potential breaches of confidentiality between lawyers and clients.

The experts requested details from the UK government on the time periods covered, data collected, and assurances for lawyers' rights. They gave the government 60 days to respond.

Mackin linked the surveillance to the murder appeal proceedings and said legal action against the PSNI is under consideration. Corrigan called the UN intervention a welcome step and stated police broke the law despite their duty to uphold it.