Results 4,801-4,820 of 19,162 for speaker:Alan Shatter

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: We are dealing with criminal trials and we must be very careful. It is always easy to look at a proposed amendment and point out difficulties with it, and I am not trying to do this for gratuitous reasons. There is a difficulty with it. I have huge alarm bells ringing in respect of the wording of section 32(b)(1), which refers to a person who listens to and gives verbal or other support or...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: I thank the Senator for proposing the amendment, which has given rise to the very important discussion that is taking place. The amendment was only made available a few days ago. I make no complaint about that because we have subjected the House to many amendments in the past where there has only been a short time to consider them. This is an issue in which I share the views expressed by...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The current provisions regarding the debt relief notice, DRN, and personal insolvency arrangement, PIA, in sections 35(1)(e), 96(1)(f) and 116(3)(f) - but not as regards the debt settlement arrangement process in sections 62(1)(c) and 79(3)(e) - prevent a hire purchase creditor from repossessing hire purchase goods while a DRN or, as applicable, a protective certificate or PIA is, in effect,...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The objective of this amendment is to address a significant issue that may hinder the feasibility of the personal insolvency practitioner's role in practice. Were a personal insolvency practitioner to take on any more than a handful of cases, he or she could not manage them without some assistance from another person, for example, a staff member. The amendment is designed to address this by...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: Section 93(2), which relates to an application for a protective certificate in the context of a personal insolvency arrangement does not, unlike the corresponding provision in section 29(2), concerning DRNs, and section 59(2), concerning DSAs, mention any fee to be forwarded with the documents. The proposed amendment in paragraph (a) mirrors the DSA arrangement at section 59(2)....

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: This is a technical amendment to correct an error in the amendments to section 38 or the Courts of Justice Act 1936 which were made by section 64(e) of the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2011.

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: These are technical drafting amendments required to improve the presentation of the Personal Insolvency Act 2012 and to correct errors in the text. Amendment No. 39 is an interpretation provision for the proposed new Part 8 of the Bill. Part 8 provides for a number of amendments to the 2012 Act. Many of the amendments are technical in nature and address errors in the existing text or...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The purpose of this amendment to section 27 of the 2012 Act is to clarify the roles of the approved intermediary, the insolvency service, during the debt relief notice process. The proposed amendment to subsection (10) ensures there is no confusion for debtors as to what agency, the service, the insolvency service or the approved intermediary, they are meant to be dealing with over the...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: Section 34 of the Personal Insolvency Act provides that the debt relief notice remains in effect for three years from the date on which it is recorded in the register of debt relief notices. This period is called the supervision period. Sections 34(2), 34(3) and 42 to 44, inclusive, provide for extension of the supervision period by the court, on application to it by the consultancy service,...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The Senator has raised an interesting issue. It would be important that jurors who were discharged did not engage in discussions with the media. I will certainly reflect on that matter. I am not sure if we could capture them in the context of a jury that might be sitting for many days. In circumstances where they were not involved in the deliberations at all, requiring them to stay within...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: Amendments Nos. 27 to 38, inclusive, insert a new Part 7 into the Bill and are required to give effect to the transfer of the existing Office of the Official Assignee in bankruptcy to the Insolvency Service of Ireland. When we were dealing with the Personal Insolvency Bill I indicated that if it was not possible to address this issue in that Bill, we would deal with in the Courts Bill....

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The only issue the Senator raised that is of relevance to the amendment was whether, under this proposal, we will inevitably and forever more have two additional members of the Supreme Court. The amendment allows for the appointment of an initial two members to the Supreme Court. If, some years from now, it transpires that the backlog issues have been resolved - the new court of appeal will...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The Law Reform Commission recently published a report on jury service, which includes a recommendation that legislative provision be made for the appointment of up to three additional jurors to deal with lengthy trials. The commission recommendation also proposes that the final jury that retires to make a decision in a case should be selected by ballot. This issue is of significance to...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The ballot concept is well understand. Basically, one draws lots rather than holding a vote to choose who will be in the jury. I will, however, reflect on the issue raised by Senator Burke in that context. The Law Reform Commission considered the option of having alternate jurors as opposed to a group of 15 jurors. It was concerned that if one were to have alternates or substitutes, two or...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: These are technical amendments to amend references to section 33 of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961, to the Hire-Purchase Acts, and to increase the jurisdiction limits on hire purchase matters under the Consumer Credit Act 1995 in order that they will be in harmony with the increases proposed in this Bill.

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: This provides for the appointment of two additional judges to the Supreme Court. This is an important proposal because there are substantial arrears of cases to be heard in the Supreme Court. There is a list of in excess of 70 cases outstanding by way of appeal that are described as priority cases. The Chief Justice has estimated it will take between three to four years to complete all...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The Attorney General has advised that the amendments are necessary to improve the drafting of the provisions in section 6 and 9 of the Bill regarding liability for offences committed by bodies corporate.

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: The Bill does not take a prescriptive approach to regulating members of the media who may or may not be permitted access to relevant child care, family law and adoption proceedings. The Bill leaves it to the court to allow bona fide members of the media to be present in certain circumstances. The formula “bona fide members of the media” has been used in other legislation....

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: I will deal first with the amendment tabled by Senator Darragh O'Brien and then with the other amendments that are being discussed together. As Senator Power stated, the purpose of amendment No. 10 is to delete the existing provision in section 133(4) of the Personal Insolvency Act 2012, which provides that the public may inspect the insolvency registers at all reasonable times and to insert...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2013: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Alan Shatter: I will respond briefly by noting it is not about naming and shaming anyone. For example, one might ask what is the purpose of the protective certificate. The protective certificate is to protect the debtor from being sued by individuals who are owed money during the period between when the protective certificate is granted and the engagement with the personal insolvency practitioner trying...