Vol. 427 No. 4
7 Mr. Molloy asked the Minister for Equality and Law Reform his views on whether a strong case exists for the designation of particular members of the Judiciary to hear family law cases; whether such members should have special training; and the plans, if any, he has to initiate such reforms.
21 Mr. Clohessy asked the Minister for Equality and Law Reform his views on whether the present arrangements for the hearing of family law cases is satisfactory; and if not, the action, if any, he proposes to take on this matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 21 together.
The subject of family courts is at present being examined by the Law Reform Commission. Once the commission's report has been received the matter will be considered fully by Government.
The designation of individual judges to specialise in one category of case would raise the question of how this could be achieved having regard to the independence of the Judiciary from the Executive and to the functions and responsibilities that the Chief Justice and the President of the other courts have for the overall allocation of the business of their courts.
Proposals for alteration in the day-to-day operation of the courts' services, including the arrangements for the hearing of family law cases, as well as questions regarding training for the Judiciary, would essentially be matters for the Minister for Justice to examine in consultation, where appropriate, with the Judiciary.
I will, of course, be liaising closely with my colleague, the Minister for Justice, in an endeavour to ensure that the service offered by our family courts matches to the greatest possible extent the requirements of those who need to avail of it.
Would the Minister accept that all judges are not suitable to hear family law cases, that a certain sensitivity is required to hear the kind of cases involved and would he agree that there be no interference with the independence of the Judiciary if the Chief Justice were asked to designate members to hear family cases only? Will the Minister further agree that the all party Committee on Marriage Breakdown recommended this? Would the Minister further agree that to wait for another report from the Law Reform Commission is not satisfactory, given the great trauma and distress being caused to many people who have to go before our family courts at the moment, given the lack of facilities, the manner in which some cases are held and the lack of understanding many members of the Judiciary have of this area, which many of them regard as being something that should not be brought before the law? Some members of the Judiciary have an inferior attitude to the whole question of family law. This is unsatisfactory and it places many families who are already in distress in an even worse situation.
I agree that some judges have not practised in that area during their careers as solicitors or at the bar and perhaps do not have as great an interest in this branch of the law as they might. It is open to the Chief Justice or the Presidents of the High Court, the Circuit Court or the District Court to appoint particular judges and designate them to attend in the courts hearing family law cases. It is desirable that they should exercise great care in whom they appoint. I hope they will do that. I have no problem with asking the Minister for Justice to suggest to the Chief Justice and the Presidents of the courts that they might take the utmost care in designating particular judges to hear family cases. Ideally we should have special family courts and a judge with particular qualifications and training to deal with cases that require great sensitivity and specialisation. In the UK they have special family law divisions which permanently sit on that basis. Judges could not be compelled to attend training courses but they could be invited to attend seminars and discuss their work with social workers and other specialists in that field. These measures would be progressive and I would suggest them to my colleague, the Minister for Justice.
The Minister has more or less answered by question, which was if the Minister supported the idea that the Judiciary should have access to special training and seminars, particularly in the areas of sexual abuse, violence in the family and child sexual abuse, as their counterparts have access to such training in the UK.
As I said to Deputy Harney, I agree that that would be essential, particularly since the operation of the Separation Act, 1989, and the vastly increased volume of work now passing through the courts as a result of that Act, which Deputy Shatter piloted through the House and which has been a great help to so many people. It is particularly important that the judges should be specialists in this field. It requires a specialised knowledge in more than just law. It requires a knowledge of family circumstances. Fortunately, we have specialists in various fields who could be of great help to the Judiciary in their work, not only with spouses but with children. These courts are concerned with the care and custody of children, their advancement and so on. That would be an ideal.
If the Minister believes that the ideal is to establish family courts — and the Minister supported that ideal when both he and I were members of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Marriage Breakdown — will he introduce legislation to establish special family courts, as this is now an area which comes within his Ministerial competence? If the Minister introduces legislation to provide for the establishment of family courts he will have the wholehearted support of this side of the House.
The Deputy is not quite right in stating that it comes within my ambit. It is a reserve function of the Department of Justice to set up courts. The administration of the courts system remains with the Department of Justice and has not been devolved to me. The whole question of family courts is being examined by the Law Reform Commission and I hope they will make recommendations to the Government. I am sure they will recommend the establishment of family courts and will give suggestions as to the modus operandi of this court. When the report comes through I will ensure that it is fully considered by the Government and I hope it will be possible for the Minister for Justice to introduce legislation to implement its recommendations.
Is the Minister aware that from time to time there have been inappropriate judgments and methods in court in relation to family law and that this will continue until we get the report from the Law Reform Commission? At the moment part of the difficulty people experience in court is the onus on the individual to have legal representation. Is the Minister aware that for many people going into court on a traumatic family issue, particularly in relation to domestic violence, the individual is totally unprepared and very often unable to deal with the court process? Would he consider that the inclusion of more women in the Juciciary would be beneficial?
The Deputy is correct in stating that inappropriate decisions are, on occasion, handed down by family law courts but inappropriate decisions are not the prerogative of the family law courts. From time to time inappropriate decisions are handed down by all courts and that is the reason we have appeal procedures and frequently decisions are overruled.
By elderly gentlemen.
They have more serious consequences in family courts.
There can be serious consequences in any court when decisions are handed down which are inappropriate and many of these are reversed on appeal. I agree with the Deputy that appearances by litigants on their own can be frightening and traumatic experiences. We have to try to do something about that. That will be part of my brief.
I am glad to hear the Minister is supportive of the notion of training for the Judiciary, particularly in relation to rape cases and violence against women. Would the Minister agree that such training would be useful and would, in fact, compensate for the absence of representation of the victim in rape cases? Would he agree that a trained judge with specialist skills would be a vehicle to protect girls from a very harsh defending counsel?
I wish to confirm to the House that I was not referring to criminal cases which come within the ambit of the Department of Justice. The answer I gave referred to family law cases involving spouses, children and so on. The comment made by the Deputy is one I support but I suggest she raises the issue by way of question to the Minister for Justice who has responsibility in that area.
Can the Minister confirm that he is the person who has responsibility for dealing with the introduction of divorce legislation and the various family law reforms which are part of the Government programme? Would the Minister agree that it would be preferable to introduce this new legislation and if we are to have another divorce referendum the Government should take steps prior to that referendum to establish a specialised system of family courts so that judges asked to deterimine such cases are fully qualified. The Minister should communicate that to his colleague, the Minister for Justice, with a view to the Government making a political decision to establish family courts.
I so confirm.
Perhaps we could expedite matters. We have dealt only with seven questions.
