Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the Deputies who contributed to this debate. Some of them will have been in the House this time last year. If they checked their diaries from that time they will have seen it is precisely one year to the day when the Second Stage debate on the Thirty-third Amendment of the Constitution (Court of Appeal) Bill 2013 took place. At that time it was indicated that an establishment Bill would be required and that the timetable for that foresaw enactment of that Bill before the end of July 2014. I am very pleased that we are on track to adhere to that timetable and I fully acknowledge the co-operation of Deputies on all sides of the House, which is reflected in their willingness to give time to this Bill now and over the coming days to make sure it is enacted before the end of this Dáil term.

In bringing this Bill before the Oireachtas at this time, the Government is fulfilling its commitment to introduce the relevant legislation in such time as to enable the new court to be established by the autumn of this year. That is what is intended. The structures being put in place in preparation for establishment will facilitate the court system in meeting the demands placed on it in this ever-changing environment, as the Deputies present noted. The objective is to provide a first class service to judges, practitioners, court staff and, most importantly of all, the users of the court system.

In this context I note that as well as the public consultation process undertaken by way of last year's referendum, a Courts Service Implementation Committee has been set up to consider the organisational structure, staffing, accommodation and operational requirements of the new court. The Judiciary has also set up a committee of superior court judges to prepare for the establishment of the court.

Frequently we are critical, and rightly so, of introducing new layers into pre-existing structures. However, in this instance it is clear there is considerable merit in the establishment of an intermediate court between the High Court and the Supreme Court.

I am confident that the establishment of the Court of Appeal will have the beneficial effect of increasing overall efficiency in processing appeals in the superior courts. It will also ensure that the Supreme Court will be facilitated in developing the law in a principled and considered way and that its stature as the pre-eminent court within our courts system will be enhanced.

There should also be a positive effect for individual litigants, as a substantial decrease is anticipated in the average waiting time for cases to be heard. As both Deputy Harris and Deputy John Paul Phelan stated today, that is critical in terms of access to justice. In addition, the establishment of the Court of Appeal may have positive consequences for the wider economy. This is because the attraction for foreign investors of a courts system which is functioning to its optimal level should not be underestimated. Equally, commercial operators with a domestic base should also benefit from the new efficiencies.

The Government's commitment to the establishment of the new court is evidenced by the financial provision made by it in these difficult economic times. Sufficient resources will be available to the court and to its staff so as to ensure it can operate in an efficient and effective manner and evolve in a dynamic fashion. Indications are that additional expenditure of the order of €2.5 million will be incurred each year in the running of the Court of Appeal. In addition, one-off costs of the order of €2 million will be incurred in providing accommodation and facilities for judges and staff, including €900,000 on IT hardware, the installation of digital audio recording facilities and the development of a new case management system. This is substantial investment to ensure that we have an effective and efficient court of appeal.

The Government has agreed to appoint ten judges, including the President to the Court of Appeal. A benefit of appointing such a number of judges is that the Court of Appeal may sit in divisions of three judges. Those divisions will be constituted in such a way as to take account of the volume and range of business to be transacted in the court at any time. In addition, the president or another judge of the court may hear and determine interlocutory applications while the divisions are sitting.

While appointing a lesser number of judges to the Court of Appeal would have had a reduced impact on Exchequer finances, the expenditure incurred has to be balanced against the positive effects of appointing a sufficient number of judges to address, in a realistic fashion, the current backlog of cases which is before the Supreme Court and the likely flow of appeals from decisions given in cases before the other courts. We are a litigious society and it may safely be said that the volume of business coming before our courts is unlikely to diminish in the coming years.

In the course of their examination of the Bill, Deputies may have noted that no particular measures are to be put in place to provide for enforcement of and compliance with the provisions of the Bill on its enactment. It will be a matter for the Superior Courts Rules Committee to develop and apply appropriate rules of court which will facilitate the new arrangements. Furthermore, the nature of the Bill is such that it does not contain a provision for its review. The critical criterion for success is the establishment of a court of appeal which meets the needs of users and practitioners. In this regard a key performance indicator for the new court is a substantial reduction in the waiting time for an appeal to be heard and determined.

In the course of the debate, Deputies referred to a range of issues which relate to our courts system. They also raised various aspects of the operation of the courts system. I want to reply to some of those.

Deputy John Paul Phelan asked about the cases before the Court of Criminal Appeal. These will continue to be heard by that court. Those pending but not heard will be dealt with by the new court.

In response to Deputy Harris, work is ongoing on the judicial council Bill which will address many of the issues which he raised in his contribution. We hope to have that important Bill ready later this year. I hope it will be published in September.

Deputy Niall Collins referred to the fact that it had taken a number of years to bring this ambitious project to fruition and that many parties have collaborated in order to bring us to the point where we are today. He referred specifically to the Commercial Court and the problems faced by the fact that the prompt way in which that court dealt with cases before it cannot through no fault of its own be matched by equal promptness on the part of the Supreme Court. It is precisely this bottleneck that we intend to address with the establishment of the new Court of Appeal.

Deputy Mac Lochlainn referred to the need to reform the judicial appointments process. As he acknowledged, and as I stated, we are undertaking a review of that process. That review will consider how best to ensure and protect the principle of judicial independence and includes the consideration of issues, such as the appointments process, eligibility criteria for the role of the judicial appointments advisory board, which Deputy Harris also raised, and the need to promote equality and diversity. I take the points Deputy Harris made in relation to gender as well.

The judicial council Bill, which as I stated is being prepared, will establish the judicial council of all judges to promote high standards of conduct among judges and supports for judges. Central to the Bill is provision for effective remedies for complaints about judicial behaviour. The provisions, which are under ongoing consideration, include the establishment of a judicial conduct committee with lay participation in the investigation and consideration of complaints. It will also facilitate the formal establishment of the judicial council and the ongoing support and education of judges through the Judicial Studies Institute.

I thank all Deputies who contributed to the debate. While the Bill is essentially technical in nature, it is, nonetheless, critical legislation in terms of giving effect to the decision of the people that a new court of appeal should be established. In overseeing the legislative building blocks of a new court, we are participating in a truly historic moment. For that reason, notwithstanding its somewhat specialist character, this is a very significant Bill to bring before the House and everyone can be proud of the part we all are playing in the establishment of this new court.

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