Ms Ursula Regan:

That brings us into the realm of the operation of the District Court, which is the court before which the application is most likely to be brought. The main court complex for the Dublin area is Dolphin House, which has four courts sitting per day, five days a week. An application to dispense with consent would be regarded as an emergency application. Given the volume of business, it now takes three months from the date an application is made to bring it before the court if it is not considered an emergency. It might take longer. A case can be made if there is an emergency, and an applicant will certainly be moved up the list. However, it is not an immediate application by any standard. Quite simply, Dolphin House cannot cope with its current volume of business.