Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 January 2015
323. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of court exemption orders that were issued to permit a marriage where one or both of the spouses were below the age of 18 years in 2010 to 2014, inclusive; her plans for legislative changes in this area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2435/15]
View answerUnder the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service which is independent in exercising its functions, which include the provision of information on the courts system.
In order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made and the Courts Service has informed me that statistics are not compiled in such a manner as to provide the information sought by the Deputy. The information could only be retrieved by way of a manual examination of individual court records. As I am sure the Deputy will appreciate, this would require a disproportionate amount of staff time and resources which cannot be justified.
As the Deputy is aware, under the law as it stands, a minor may seek an exemption from the minimum age of marriage. I wish to inform the Deputy that my Department, together with other relevant Government Departments, intends to examine the issues relating to marriage by minors and consider whether any amendment is required to the existing exemption provisions.
