David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

In page 3, to delete lines 15 to 32, and in page 4, to delete lines 1 to 8 and substitute the

following:“ “(2A) (a) The issue of a summons by electronic means in accordance with subsection (2) shall be deemed to have been effected where the appropriate office transmits by electronic means all of the information necessary to create the summons in an automatic manner and, accordingly, the issue of the summons shall be deemed to have occurred on the date of such transmission.

(b) The validity of a summons, the issue of which is deemed to have been effected in the manner specified in paragraph (a), shall not be affected by reason of the date of its issue falling on a date that is earlier than the date of its creation.

(c) Where the procedure for the issue of a summons specified in paragraph (a) is used and more than one document is created in an automatic manner in respect of the same alleged offence and each document so created is identical to each other document so created as to both form and content, then, each such document shall be the summons.

(d) A reference in this subsection to the creation in an automatic manner of a summons shall be construed as a reference to the creation of the summons on paper in legible form by electronic means.”,”.

This amendment is proposed to be made to section 2A. Section 2 provides for the amendment of section 1 of the Courts (No. 3) Act 1986. Section 2 provides for the insertion of a new section 2A into the 1986 Act.

Amendment No. 1 proposes to replace the wording of the current section 2A with alternative wording. This alternative wording arises from the further work of the Advisory Counsel and Parliamentary Counsel and is aimed at expressing in a more straightforward manner the essential elements of the new system of the printing of summonses.

The proposed section 2A(a) essentially repeats the provision for the issue of a summons by electronic means to be deemed to have been effected by the transmission by the relevant court office of the information necessary to create the summons in an automatic manner.

The proposed section 2A(b) deals with the reality in the context of an automated system that the date of issue of a summons by the transmission of the electronic information may be earlier than the date of the creation of the summons. In this context, the creation of the summons is the printing of the summons as a paper document.

The proposed section 2A(c) departs from the approach in the Bill as initiated in respect of the deeming of each summons to be a true copy of the summons. The amendment now proposes that where more than one document is created in respect of the same alleged offence, each such document shall be the summons.

The proposed section 2A(d) essentially repeats, but in a more straightforward manner, the provision of the Bill to the effect that the creation in an automatic manner of a summons shall be taken to be the printing on paper of the summons.