Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

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 lengthy trials involving fraud or other complex financial matters. Under current law, a jury consists of 12 members but a decision in a trial by ten members of a jury can be accepted. Currently, up to two members of a jury could become incapacitated or otherwise unavailable during the period of the trial without risk to the sustainability of the trial. However, during the period of a protracted trial, there is a risk that more than two jurors would become unavailable. Were this to occur, the trial would collapse.

I have accepted the Law Reform Commission's recommendation that legislative provision is required to provide against such a possibility. The provision before the House proposes to amend the Juries Act 1976 to insert a new section 15A to provide that, on application by the prosecution, defence or in its own motion, the Circuit Court or Central Criminal Court can order that up to 15 people be selected to serve as jurors. The judge has to be satisfied that the trial is likely to last for more than two months. If, before the jury is to retire to consider its verdict, there are more than 12 jurors remaining on the jury, a jury of 12 jurors will be selected by ballot.

I am also providing, by way of amendment to section 20 of the Juries Act, that where a jury has additional jurors, challenges without cause shown can be made by the prosecution or accused person or persons of up to eight jurors as opposed to seven jurors in a normal jury.