Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

91. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the status of interest applying to a judgment mortgage; if a judgment mortgage lapses after a period of time; the steps the creditor may take to enforce the asset, the subject to the judgment mortgage; the rights of the borrower; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17159/16]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The position is that the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2009 updated the law in relation to judgment mortgages registered after 1 December 2009 by repealing the Judgment Mortgage (Ireland) Acts 1850 and 1858 and replacing them with updated provisions as recommended by the Law Reform Commission in 2004.

Section 116 of the 2009 Act provides that a creditor who has obtained a judgment against a person may apply to the Property Registration Authority (PRA) to register a judgment mortgage against that person's estate or interest in land in the Land Registry or Registry of Deeds as appropriate. Registration of the judgment mortgage by the PRA operates to charge the debtor's estate or interest in the land and entitles the judgment mortgagee (i.e. creditor) to apply to court for an order under section 117 of the Act, or section 31 in the case of co-owned property. A judgment mortgage remains valid until discharged and there is no need to re-register it in order to maintain its validity or enforceability.

In the case of an application under section 117, the court may make such order for enforcement of the judgment mortgage as the court thinks appropriate, including an order for sale of the land and distribution of the proceeds of sale. In the case of co-owned property, section 30 of the 2009 Act provides that the registration of a judgment mortgage against the property of a joint tenant no longer severs the joint tenancy and if the joint tenancy remains unsevered, the judgment mortgage is extinguished on the death of the judgment debtor, i.e. a surviving joint tenant has no liability for debts of the deceased joint tenant against whose interest in the property the judgment mortgage was registered.

A judgment mortgagee (i.e. creditor) may apply to court for an order under section 31 to enforce a judgment mortgage in the case of co-owned land. In dealing with such an application, the court may dismiss the application or, in light of the rights of all co-owners, make such order relating to the land as appears to the court to be just and equitable in the circumstances of the particular case. The wider discretion available to the court in the case of co-owned land is intended to ensure that the interests of all co-owners are taken into account in a fair and equitable manner. It should also be noted that subsection 5 of Section 31 makes it clear that this section does not affect the court's jurisdiction under the Family Home Protection Act 1976.

As regards interest rates applicable in the case of judgment mortgages, I will communicate directly with the Deputy on receipt of this information.