Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 February 2024
9. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Justice in regard to delays in probate, what the current waiting time is; how many cases are on a waiting list in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024 to date, in tabular form; the average wait time in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024 to date, in tabular form; what measures she plans to address this; if there are plans to reopen the office to the public; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8339/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraI would like to ask the Minister about the delays in probate. What is the current waiting time? How many cases have been on a waiting list in recent years and to date in 2024? What has been the average wait time in recent years and to date in 2024? What measures does the Minister plan to take to address this? Are there plans to reopen the office to the public? Will she make a statement on the matter?
I thank the Deputy for raising this important question about probate. The Probate Office is an office of the High Court. Management of the courts is the responsibility of the Judiciary and the Courts Service, which are independent in exercising their functions under the Courts Service Act 1998. Probate functions are also carried out by county registrars at district probate registries in 14 provincial court offices. A total of 21,531 applications for probate were received in 2023, while 19,245 were deeded. The Courts Service is dealing with 6,516 probate cases on hand. I will forward a note to the Deputy with full details on waiting times at probate offices for the period requested.
The Minister and I are committed to ensuring the courts are resourced to administer justice equitably, efficiently and effectively and to driving the modernisation and digital first agenda across the entire justice sector. These commitments are reflected in budget 2024, as €183 million has been allocated for the Courts Vote, including capital funding of €67 million. This builds on significant investment in recent years, with a total allocation of €176.5 million in 2023 and €163.9 million in 2022.
In summer 2020, the Courts Service embarked on a large-scale ten-year modernisation programme following business case approval by my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform. As part of this modernisation programme, funding has been allocated to the Courts Service to develop an online probate system called eProbate. The project will deliver a facility to submit and track applications for grants of representation online via a public facing portal. This new digital solution is currently at the early stages of development and will continue to be developed throughout 2024 with an expected public launch and roll-out in the first half of 2025.
I thank the Minister of State. There is a significant problem here and it is reflected in many quarters. According to the 2024 Lisney property outlook, sales of second-hand homes will continue to be affected by lengthy delays in probate and this will impact on the supply of properties to the market. This is creating uncertainty. We see from the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland that these delays have frustrated the sale of homes. We know that some grants of probate are now taking up to 22 weeks. We can see - I have some of the recent figures and I know the Minister of State will furnish me with more - that there are significant delays year-on-year. Are there plans to reopen the office? Part of the frustration for solicitors and for people submitting applications is the lack of engagement and communication with the Probate Office. Are there plans to open the face-to-face office?
The public-facing portal will act as a single point of contact for users to submit and track their applications through the entire process. That will speed matters up and will also bring transparency as to where applications are at. The electronic submission of applications through the online portal, combined with automated validation of key information at submission time, will enable faster and more efficient processing of applications, with the aim of reducing waiting times. At the same time, the Courts Service is aware of the need to reduce waiting times while the eProbate project is under way. In this regard, it is prioritising the recruitment of additional staff to help in this task. While there is a need to balance providing information and support with processing applications, I am informed that the Dublin probate general office will reopen to the public for mornings from 4 March. Additionally, the rules offices will reopen to allow the public and legal professionals to lodge court applications and other legal documents relating to the probate process. These measures are intended to provide greater support to applicants while the digital solution is developed.
It is welcome that the office will open even for some limited hours because its closure has contributed significantly to delays. Is it the case, with regard to the work on the eProbate service, that it will be early 2025 when that will be launched? There is a need for a significant effort in the meantime to address the delays.
Regarding staffing, is there an update or timeline on indicative numbers in terms of workforce planning to address the delays and backlog? It is having an impact on processing house sales in the second-hand market. We have heard today that it also affects affordability if we do not have a steady supply of second-hand homes. If there are barriers, they need to be addressed.
I thank the Deputy. The public roll-out of the launch is expected in the first half of 2025. In the meantime, some public-facing elements are being reopened. The Courts Service is prioritising the hiring of staff. The timeline is as quickly as possible. This type of staff can be difficult to recruit and there is a particular expertise required. In addition, we are in a market where it is difficult to get staff. An official probate office might only have two staff members. If one of those retires suddenly, waiting times can significantly expand. I saw this happen in my county recently. Even one staff member leaving can have a massive impact. I can assure the Deputy that I have heard his concerns and the Courts Service is prioritising this important area.
