Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 53:

In page 19, after line 39, to insert the following new section:44.—(1) The Principal Act is amended in the manner specified in the Schedule*.
(2) The following provisions of the Principal Act are repealed:

(a) section 115(2)(i);
(b) section 126;
(c) section 190(2)(b).".

The amendment provides for the repeal of three sections of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 and the insertion of a new Schedule to the Act. Section 115(2)(l) of the 2004 Act provides that the PRTB may direct a party to pay the costs or expenses of a PRTB adjudicator or tribunal to the PRTB in special circumstances. Legal advice furnished to me has indicated that the provision should be repealed on the basis that the PRTB should not be a judge in its own case. Similarly, the amendment provides for the repeal of section 126 of the 2004 Act which provides that non-compliance with a determination order is automatically a criminal offence. The amendment is proposed on the advice of the Office of the Attorney General arising from the judgment of the High Court in McCann v. The Judge of Monaghan District Court & Ors. The PRTB will continue to enforce its orders by means of the civil enforcement procedure in section 124. On foot of further legal advice, I propose to provide for the repeal of section 190(2)(b) which provides that the Circuit Court may authorise a PRTB adjudicator or tribunal to award costs to a party in an application to the Circuit Court for injunctive relief under section 189. I have been advised that it is not appropriate for the PRTB to make a direction in relation to the costs of a Circuit Court application.

Amendment No. 55 proposes to insert a new Schedule to the Act. The proposed new Schedule provides for three miscellaneous amendments. The proposed amendment to section 5(4) of the 2004 Act provides that where the board awards legal costs, such costs shall not exceed €5,000. I mentioned this amendment earlier in the context of amendments Nos. 30 to 33, inclusive. While legal costs may only be awarded by the PRTB in exceptional circumstances and with the permission of the board, there is currently no limit on the amount of any award. On foot of legal advice received by my Department, the amendment is proposed to provide for a limit of €5,000 on any award of costs made by the PRTB. The second amendment provided for in the new Schedule is to section 6(1) of the 2004 Act. This is a technical drafting amendment to clarify that the service provisions of the 2004 Act apply to all documents that must be served under the legislation. The new Schedule provides for an amendment to section 88(1) of the 2004 Act to clarify for the avoidance of doubt that the PRTB may extend time for a party to appeal to the tribunal against a determination of an adjudicator. I commend these somewhat complex amendments to the committee.