Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

These amendments introduce a measure of clarity and ensure strict coherence with existing arrangements which apply in respect of the registration of life cycle events in accordance with the Civil Registration Act 2004. These amendments have been developed following consultation and in close co-operation with colleagues in the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection. Amendments Nos. 15 and 16 will facilitate registration of a presumed death in the new register of presumed deaths which is to be established under Part 3 of the Bill. The process envisages an applicant providing the details necessary to register a presumed death as part of an application for a presumption of death order, which will be available from the court. It will be less onerous on the applicant since all the details required for an application for a court order and the registration of presumed death will be captured in a single application or process.

Amendment No. 24 places an obligation on the court to include in the presumption of death order the particulars available to it, which are necessary for the registration of a presumed death in the new register. By virtue of amendment No. 50, those particulars would be set out in the new Part 5B of the First Schedule to the Civil Registration Act 2004. This will have the effect of ensuring that the process is streamlined and that it will ease the burden on those applying for a presumption of death order from the court and, subsequently, presumably in a very short time thereafter, registering that death in the new register of presumed deaths.

Amendment No. 25 deletes the current provisions of the Bill which concern the registration of a presumed death. However, it maintains the idea that a presumption of death order made by a court has the same effect as the registration of a death under section 13(1)(d) of the 2004 Act. This amendment acknowledges that an appeal may be brought against the making of a presumption of death order, thus it introduces a stay on the effect of the presumption of death order until such time as the normal period allowed for an appeal has expired which, in the circumstances, is not only understandable but important.Such a provision is also covered in the equivalent legislation in other jurisdictions. It seems to act as a precaution to avoid inappropriate or presumed entries in the register of presumed deaths.

Amendment No. 50 is the most important in the group. It provides for the establishment of a new register of presumed deaths through a number of amendments to the Civil Registration Act 2004, as amended. The new register will be part of the suite of civil registers maintained by the Registrar General. Specifically, amendment No. 50 inserts a new Part 5B into the Civil Registration Act 2004, as amended, which sets out the registration process and a new set of required particulars in Part 5B of the Schedule to the Act. It is important to note that the amendments introduce a new register to record those cases where a presumption of death order has been issued by the courts. The existing register of deaths will continue to operate.