I propose to take Questions Nos. 431 and 432 together.
In general, courts have discretion, subject to the requirements of the administration of justice, as to the directions they may give in a particular case to enable a trial to be conducted expeditiously, including directions for exchange of documents. Moreover, case management regimes, for example, have been in operation in the High Court in the areas of commercial proceedings, family law proceedings and some other categories of litigation. I understand that, borrowing on the experience of those regimes, proposals to introduce case progression procedures in respect of further litigation categories in the High Court are currently being studied by the judiciary.
Last September I signed into law the Circuit Court Rules (Case Progression in Family Law Proceedings) 2008 which conferred County Registrars with important powers to assist in expediting family law proceedings in the Circuit Court. Those rules assign to County Registrars, through case progression hearings, the functions of overseeing preparation of family law cases, setting timetables for completion of pre-trial steps, generally monitoring the progress of the case, and making final arrangements for the trial.
The Third Programme of work of the Law Reform Commission includes a project on documentary evidence and technology. Documentary evidence is an essential element of nearly all litigation. This project will discuss the rules concerning proof of execution and authentication of documents, and consider the need for their modernisation. The project will also consider whether electronic evidence should be regulated as a separate category of evidence. My Department will give careful consideration to the findings of the Commission.
The amount of time potentially spent by Gardaí in court proceedings was noted in a recent report of the Garda Síochána Inspectorate. It also noted that within the Dublin Metropolitan Region a Court Presenter system is in place in the Dublin Metropolitan Court District and that outside the DMR the local District Officer is the Prosecuting Officer, representing the Director of Public Prosecutions, for the majority of prosecutions before the District and Circuit Courts. The Inspectorate welcomed developments in the Court Presenter system which frees up significant Garda time from court duty. The Inspectorate has suggested that this scheme should be extended to all courts throughout the Dublin Metropolitan Region and I understand this recommendation is under consideration by the Garda authorities.
Question No. 433 answered with Question No. 430.