Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support Senator McDowell's amendments. It is important to keep the aspect of the remit of the family court in the Oireachtas for accountability purposes. It is crucial in reviewing this legislation that we acknowledge the countless family law practitioners and the Bar Council, who have stated that this proposal to add divorces, judicial separations and cohabitation applications to the workload of busy district judges would lead to a greater delay and more interim hearings, which would add to an eventual legal cost. The chair of the Council of the Bar of Ireland says that the Bar of Ireland is not aware of any concerns expressed by those involved in the family justice system about the allocation of jurisdiction between courts. This seems to be a solution in search of a problem. Transferring cases from the Circuit Court to the already busy District Court poses a significant risk. This risk extends beyond delays in judicial separations and divorce cases. It may also result in delays in other civil and family law matters, including domestic violence, guardianship, custody, access, maintenance and child care cases.

Additionally, Safe Ireland, a group which represents women and children's safety and well-being, is very concerned that the unintended consequences of this dramatic rise in monetary values, together with the significant expansion in the types of cases which may be heard by the family District Court, will result in the new family district courts being overwhelmed with work. They are concerned there will be no net improvement and possibly even a deterioration in the current challenging family law system. The jurisdiction of the family District Court will encompass the large majority of family law cases of all types when this law is passed. If this legislation creates greater workload for the courts system, it may mean in practice even more delay and attendant distress and uncertainty for women and children awaiting hearings on urgent family law matters involving children. This is an outcome which is good for no one, including Courts Service staff and judges.