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15 2002

COURTS AND COURT OFFICERS ACT, 2002

PART 5

Miscellaneous

Number of ordinary judges of High Court.

28. —The Act of 1995 is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 9 (inserted by the Courts (No. 2) Act, 1997 ):

“9.—The number of ordinary judges of the High Court shall not be more than 26.”.

Amendment in specified case of Part I of Second Schedule to Act of 1961.

29. —Where a judge of the High Court who was appointed on 20 December 1990 vacated his office on 30 November 2001, he shall be deemed for the purposes of Part I of the Second Schedule to the Act of 1961 to have vacated his office after 15 years of service.

Interest on costs, charges or expenses of certain judgments, orders or decrees.

30. —(1) Subject to section 23 of the Act of 1981, interest on the amount of the costs, charges or expenses awarded to a party in proceedings in a court to which section 27 of the Debtors (Ireland) Act, 1840, applies pursuant to a judgment, order or decree of the court shall be payable—

(a) subject to subsection (3), at the rate of 2 per cent per annum from the date of such judgment, order or decree until—

(i) if the amount aforesaid is agreed by the parties to the proceedings, the date of such agreement, or

(ii) in default of agreement—

(I) the date on which a certificate of taxation (which expression includes an interim certificate of taxation) in respect of the amount aforesaid is issued by a taxing master of the High Court or by a county registrar exercising the powers of such a taxing master, as may be appropriate, or

(II) if appropriate, in the case of proceedings in the Circuit Court, the date on which a county registrar measures the amount aforesaid in accordance with rules of court,

and

(b) at the rate for the time being standing specified in section 26 of the Debtors (Ireland) Act, 1840, from the appropriate date aforesaid until that amount is paid.

(2) Subsection (1) also applies, where appropriate, to part only of the amount referred to in that subsection, and that subsection shall have effect accordingly.

(3) If the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform is satisfied, having regard to the level of rates of interest generally in the State, that the rate of interest per annum for the time being standing specified in subsection (1)(a) ought to be varied, he or she may make an order varying that rate of interest and the said subsection shall have effect in accordance with the terms of any such order.

(4) An order under subsection (3) shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the order is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the order is laid before it, the order shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything done previously thereunder.

Amendment of section 7(8)(c) of Courts of Justice and Court Officers (Superannuation) Act, 1961.

31. —Section 7(8)(c) of the Courts of Justice and Court Officers (Superannuation) Act, 1961 , is amended by the substitution of “an exact number of euro” for “an exact number of pounds”.

Amendment of section 4(2) of Charities Act, 1973.

32. —Section 4(2) of the Charities Act, 1973 , is amended by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (d):

“(dd) to apply the property of the charity cy-près if any of the circumstances specified in subsection (1) of section 47 of the Charities Act, 1961 , exist in relation to the charity,”.

Amendment of Bail Act, 1997.

33. —The Bail Act, 1997 , is amended—

(a) in section 5—

(i) in subsection (1), by the insertion of “, the court may, having regard to the circumstances of the case, including the means of the person and the nature of the offence in relation to which the person is in custody, order that” after “admits a person who is in custody to bail”, and

(ii) in subsection (3), by the substitution of “the amount (if any) of any recognisance paid into court” for “the amount of any recognisance paid into court”,

(b) in section 8(2), by the insertion of “, if the court, having regard to the circumstances of the case, including the means of the person and the nature of the offence to which the warrant relates, so orders” after “approved by the member and”, and

(c) in section 9—

(i) in subsection (1), by the substitution of “any amount paid into court” for “the amount paid into court”, and

(ii) in subsection (7), by the substitution of “any moneys paid into court” for “the moneys paid into court”.

Amendment of section 61(3)(h) of Bankruptcy Act, 1988.

34. —Section 61(3)(h) of the Bankruptcy Act, 1988 , is amended by the substitution of “€7,000” for “€1,300”.

Attorney General to be member of committees on rules of court.

35. —The Attorney General shall be a member of the Superior Courts Rules Committee established by section 67 of the Act of 1936, the Circuit Court Rules Committee established by section 69 of that Act and the District Court Rules Committee established by section 71 of that Act.

Appointment of persons to act in place of certain members of committees on rules of court.

36. —(1) The Chief Justice may appoint in writing an ordinary judge of the Supreme Court to act in his or her place as a member of the Superior Courts Rules Committee established by section 67 of the Act of 1936, and the President of the High Court may appoint in writing an ordinary judge of the High Court to act in his or her place as a member of that Committee, and any such appointment may be revoked at any time by the Chief Justice or the President of the High Court, as the case may be.

(2) The President of the Circuit Court may appoint in writing an ordinary judge of the Circuit Court to act in his or her place as a member of the Circuit Court Rules Committee established by section 69 of the Act of 1936, and any such appointment may be revoked at any time by the President of the Circuit Court.

(3) The President of the District Court may appoint in writing a judge of the District Court to act in his or her place as a member of the District Court Rules Committee established by section 71 of the Act of 1936, and any such appointment may be revoked at any time by the President of the District Court.

(4) The Attorney General may appoint in writing one of his or her officers to act in his or her place as a member of any of the following:

(a) the Superior Courts Rules Committee established by section 67 of the Act of 1936,

(b) the Circuit Court Rules Committee established by section 69 of that Act,

(c) the District Court Rules Committee established by section 71 of that Act,

and any such appointment may be revoked at any time by the Attorney General.

Amendment of section 9 of Jurisdiction of Courts and Enforcement of Judgments Act, 1998.

37. —Section 9 of the Jurisdiction of Courts and Enforcement of Judgments Act, 1998, is amended—

(a) in subsection (8)(a), by the substitution of “district court area” for “district court district”, and

(b) in subsection (16), by the substitution of “Dublin Metropolitan District” for “Dublin Metropolitan Area”.

Amendment of section 8 of Act of 1998.

38. —Section 8 of the Act of 1998 is amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

“(1) The Service shall, as soon as practicable, but not later than 6 months, after the end of each year make a report in writing to the Minister of its activities during that year, and the Minister shall cause copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.”.

Authentication of certain orders and other instruments made by Courts Service.

39. —The Act of 1998 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 10:

“10A.—(1)(a) The Board may authorise generally or specially the Chief Executive to authenticate any order or other instrument or both (other than an order or instrument under seal) made under any provision mentioned in column 3 of Schedule 2 of the Acts mentioned in column 2 opposite the mention of that provision in relation to any function of the Service under that provision that is performed by the Board or by a committee of the Board.

(b) The Chief Executive may authorise generally or specially a member of the staff of the Service to authenticate any order or other instrument or both which the Chief Executive is authorised to authenticate under paragraph (a).

(2) The Chief Executive may authorise generally or specially a member of the staff of the Service to authenticate any order or other instrument or both (other than an order or instrument under seal) made under any provision mentioned in column 3 of Schedule 2 of the Acts mentioned in column 2 opposite the mention of that provision in relation to any function of the Service under that provision that is performed by the Chief Executive.

(3) If—

(a) the Board has duly authorised the Chief Executive to authenticate any order or other instrument under subsection (1)(a), or

(b) the Chief Executive has duly authorised a member of the staff of the Service to authenticate any order or other instrument under subsection (1)(b) or (2),

then that order or instrument shall be sufficiently authenticated by the signature of the Chief Executive or of such member of the staff of the Service, as the case may be.

(4) In any proceedings, a document purporting to be an order or other instrument authenticated by the signature of the Chief Executive, or of a member of the staff of the Service, as the case may be, in accordance with subsection (3) shall, unless the contrary is shown, be deemed without proof to be such order or other instrument duly authenticated in accordance with that subsection.”.

Amendment of section 13 of Act of 1998.

40. —Section 13 of the Act of 1998 is amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

“(1) The functions of the Board shall be—

(a) to consider and determine policy in relation to the Service,

(b) to oversee the implementation of that policy by the Chief Executive,

(c) to determine—

(i) which of the functions of the Service specified, or referred to, in section 5 and 29(1) are to be performed by it and which of those functions are to be performed by the Chief Executive, and

(ii) which of the powers of the Service specified, or referred to, in section 6 are to be exercised by it and which of those powers are to be exercised by the Chief Executive, and

(d) to perform such functions as it determines are to be performed by it under paragraph (c).”.

Delegation of performance of functions of Board of Courts Service.

41. —The Act of 1998 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 13:

“13A.—(1) The Board may perform any of its functions, other than the function specified in section 13(1)(c), through or by a committee of the Board established under section 15, or through or by the Chief Executive, duly authorised in that behalf by the Board.

(2) Such functions of the Board the performance of which is delegated to the Chief Executive under subsection (1) as may be specified by the Chief Executive from time to time may, with the consent of the Board, be performed by such member of the staff of the Service as may be authorised in that behalf by the Chief Executive.”.

Amendment of section 15 of Act of 1998.

42. —Section 15 of the Act of 1998 is amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

“(1) The Board may establish such committees of the Board as it thinks fit to do either or both of the following:

(a) advise it in relation to the performance of its functions,

(b) perform any of its functions to which subsection (1) of section 13A applies.”.

Amendment of section 20 of Act of 1998.

43. —Section 20 of the Act of 1998 is amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

“(1) Notwithstanding any other enactment, the Chief Executive shall—

(a) manage and control generally the staff, administration and business of the Service, including the functions of County Registrars insofar as such functions relate to a function of the Service,

(b) perform such functions of the Service as the Board determines are to be performed by the Chief Executive under section 13(1)(c), and

(c) perform such other functions as may be conferred on him or her by or under this Act or by the Board.”,

and

(b) in subsection (4), by the deletion of “, with the consent of the Board,”.

Amendment of Act of 1998.

44. —The Act of 1998 is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 33:

“33.—(1) The Service shall be deemed to be a State authority for the purposes of section 181(1) of the Act of 2000.

(2) (a) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of section 181 of the Act of 2000 or any regulations made under that subsection which provide for the giving of any specified notice with respect to proposed development consisting of the provision of temporary courthouses, it shall be necessary to give such notice of such proposed development once only.

(b) In paragraph (a), ‘courthouses’ means buildings, or other premises or installations, or other structures or facilities, whether provided on a temporary or permanent basis, used for the purposes of or in connection with the transaction of any business relating to a court, tribunal, inquiry or inquest established by statute.

(3) Where development is proposed to be carried out by or on behalf of the Service, the Minister may, if he or she is satisfied that the carrying out of the development is required by reason of an accident or emergency, by order provide that the Act of 2000 or, as may be appropriate, any requirement or requirements of regulations under section 181(1)(b) of the Act of 2000 specified in the order, shall not apply to the development, and for so long as such an order is in force the Act of 2000 or the said requirement or requirements, as the case may be, shall not apply to the development.

(4) The Minister may by order revoke an order made by him or her under subsection (3).

(5) The Minister shall cause an order made by him or her under subsection (3) or (4) to be published in the Iris Oifigiúil and notice of the making of the order to be published in a newspaper circulating in the area of the development concerned.

(6) In this section, ‘Act of 2000’ means Planning and Development Act, 2000.”.

Performance of function under section 44(2) of Act of 1936.

45. —(1) The function under subsection (2) of section 44 of the Act of 1936 shall be performed by the Minister to the exclusion of the Courts Service, and that subsection shall have effect accordingly.

(2) The reference to section 44(2) of the Act of 1936 in Schedule 2 to the Act of 1998 is deleted.

Register of reserved judgments.

46. —(1) The Courts Service shall establish and maintain in the prescribed form and manner a register of every judgment reserved by the Supreme Court, the High Court, the Circuit Court and the District Court in any civil proceedings to be known as the Register of Reserved Judgments (in this section referred to as “the register”).

(2) Such particulars as may be prescribed in respect of any proceedings in which judgment is reserved shall be entered in the register.

(3) Subject to subsection (6), if judgment in the proceedings concerned is not delivered within the prescribed period or periods from the date on which it is reserved, the Courts Service shall list the proceedings before the judge who reserved judgment therein on a date not later than such period as may be prescribed after the first-mentioned prescribed period and shall give notice of the listing in the prescribed form to the parties to the proceedings and a copy of the notice to the President of the Court concerned.

(4) The judge concerned shall, on a listing of proceedings under subsection (3), fix a date not later than such period as may be prescribed after the listing by which judgment in those proceedings shall be delivered.

(5) The date fixed under subsection (4) shall be entered in the register in relation to the proceedings concerned.

(6) Subsection (3) shall not apply if the judge who reserved judgment in the proceedings concerned dies, or if the judge concerned is ill, for the duration of his or her illness or in such other circumstances as may be prescribed.

(7) (a) The register or any part of it shall be kept at a place or places to be prescribed and shall be made available for inspection by any person on payment of such fee (if any) as may be prescribed and at such times as may be prescribed.

(b) A person may, on a request being made by him or her in the prescribed manner and on payment of such fee (if any) as may be prescribed, obtain a copy certified in such manner as may be prescribed of any entry or entries in the register.

(8) The functions of the Courts Service under this section shall be performed by the Chief Executive Officer of the Courts Service, but such of those functions as may be specified by him or her may be performed by such member or members of the staff of the Courts Service as may be authorised in that behalf by him or her.

(9) (a) The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform may by regulations provide for any matter referred to in this section as prescribed or to be prescribed.

(b) Different periods may be prescribed under subsections (3) and (4) in respect of proceedings of different kinds and, in particular, shorter periods may be prescribed in respect of applications for interim or interlocutory orders.

(10) In this section, references to a judge shall, in the case of a court constituted of more than one judge, be construed as references to the presiding judge of the court.

(11) In this section—

“prescribed” means prescribed by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform by regulations under this section;

“reserved”, in relation to a judgment in court proceedings, means where a decision in the proceedings or the reasons for such decision or both are not announced by the court immediately upon the conclusion of the hearing of the proceedings but instead are postponed—

(a) without a date for such announcement being specified at the time, or

(b) for a period of not less than 14 days after such conclusion.