Vol. 434 No. 6
59 Mr. Cullen asked the Minister for Justice the number of judicial separation proceedings taken since the legislation was introduced; the average cost of taking these proceedings; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
The Judicial Separation and Family Law Reform Act, 1989, came into force on 19 October 1989. From that date to 31 July 1992, the end of the last legal year for which statistics are available, there were an estimated 3,330 applications for judicial separation made, 1,022 of which were granted. I will forward statistics for the legal year 1992-93 to the Deputy as soon as they become available.
The cost of taking proceedings under the Judicial Separation and Family Law Reform Act, 1989, is dependent on the fees charged by legal representatives involved in the proceedings which of course would vary from case to case and are a matter between the legal representatives and their clients. In the case of individuals who qualified for civil legal aid of course the cost to applicants would have been limited in accordance with the provision of the Civil Legal Aid Scheme. About 16 per cent of those involved in judicial separation litigation in the periods mentioned above were in receipt of legal aid.
Court fees for proceedings under this Act would in general amount to no more than £60 and I am at present arranging to have proceedings under the Act exempted from payment of court fees.
