[1] He practised on the Oxford circuit and in the Central Criminal Court and his most famous cases included:[2] Kenealy suffered from diabetes and an erratic temperament has sometimes been attributed to poor control of the symptoms.

He married Elizabeth Nicklin of Tipton, Staffordshire in 1851 and they had eleven children,[2] including novelist Arabella Kenealy (1864–1938).

Edward Kenealy commuted to London and Oxford for his law practice but returned at weekends and other times to be with his family.

He published translations from Latin, Greek, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Irish, Persian, Arabic, Hindustani and Bengali.

His violent conduct of the case became a public scandal[1] and, after rejecting his client's claim, the jury censured his behaviour.

Dr Kenealy, as he was always called, gradually ceased to attract attention,[1] lost his seat at the 1880 general election, dying in London before the close of polling aged 60.