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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 22 Oct 1924

Vol. 9 No. 1

COUNTY COURT APPEALS BILL, 1924.—FIRST STAGE.

This is a Bill to make provision for the appointment of Commissioners to hear and determine appeals from Recorders and County Court Judges to Judges of Assize which were pending at the commencement of Part II. of the Courts of Justice Act, 1924. In explaining the necessity for the Bill, I will have to go into some detail and make what would be normally something in the nature of a Second Reading statement.

Deputies are aware that since July of 1921 no courts have sat for the hearing of appeals from Recorders and County Court Judges in the Saorstát except in the city and county of Dublin, and the result is that appeals to the number of 3,200 are now pending. In the last Session I gave, to Deputy Redmond, I think, an assurance that the hearing of those appeals would commence some time about the 20th September, and a section was inserted in the Courts of Justice Act, 1924, as follows:—

All appeals and other applications to Judges of Assize pending at the commencement of Part II. of this Act shall be heard and determined by such Judge or Judges of the High Court as shall be nominated for the purpose by the President of the High Court and at such times and places as the Minister for Home Affairs shall, by Order, prescribe and direct.

It was settled, as I say, that the appeal courts under that section would sit on or about the 20th September. When the time arrived for making the arrangements for these sittings it was ascertained in the course of a conference with the President of the High Court that only three Judges would be available for the work. There are, as Deputies know, six Judges of the High Court. One of these would have to remain in Dublin and dispose of Vacation work; another would have to deal with cases in the Central Criminal Court, and Mr. Justice Wylie could not be spared from the work of the Land Commission. Deputies may be aware that it is not uncommon to have appeals lodged for the purpose of gaining time and that appeals of that kind are frequently withdrawn immediately that notice of hearing is issued. In the case of these 3,200 appeals, if we take it that, say, 50 per cent. are, to all intents and purposes, bogus appeals, that would be withdrawn once the hearing was posted, that would leave 1,600 appeals still to be heard, and with three Judges, even maintaining a high average of ten appeals per day, which would be a very high average for new Judges, they could not, in the time at their disposal, which would amount to twenty working days before they would be due back for the ordinary sitting of the courts, dispose of more than about 600 of the 1,600 appeals which would leave roughly 1,000 over until late next year, probably until the Summer Vacation. That would, no doubt, cause intense dissatisfaction, and, facing that situation, we decided that the proper course would be to appoint Commissioners who will sit until the 1,600 appeals are disposed of. To have sent out three Judges to make a quite small inroad of 600 appeals on the large number that stand out for hearing, and to leave the rest over until late next year, would probably cause intense public dissatisfaction, and the object of this Bill is to enable four Commissioners to be appointed who would start work immediately on the passing of the Bill and sit continuously until these appeals have been disposed of. I ask for permission to introduce the Bill and to have it printed and circulated.

Question put and agreed to.
Second Stage ordered for Tuesday, 28th October.
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