Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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48. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of reserved judgments currently outstanding in the High Court over three months, one year and two years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44245/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy may be aware, under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in exercising its functions. Furthermore, the scheduling of court cases and the allocation of court business is a matter for the President of the High Court and the presiding judge who are, under the Constitution, independent in the exercise of their judicial functions.

However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made and the Courts Service has informed me that there are 92 judgments outstanding for more than 3 months in the High Court. Of that figure, 10 are outstanding for more than 1 year and a further 3 are outstanding for more than 2 years.

As the Deputy will appreciate it is preferable, for the purposes of legal certainty, to have judgments delivered as quickly as possible. The Courts Service has advised, however, that the time taken to deliver a judgment from the date it is reserved varies from case to case and may depend on a number of factors including the complexity or duration of the case, the workload of an individual judge or the matter may be awaiting a determination from another court such as the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court or the European Court of Justice. Pursuant to the Courts and Court Officers Act 2002, as amended, cases in respect of which a judgment has been reserved are listed every two months after the date on which judgment was reserved.

As the Deputy may also be aware, a Group to review the administration of civil justice in the State, chaired by the President of the High Court Mr. Justice Peter Kelly, was established recently. Membership, reporting structures and the remit of the Group are in the process of being finalised and the first meeting of the Group is scheduled for 9 November 2017.

The Group is to report to me within two years, and will make recommendations for changes with a view to improving access to civil justice in the State, promoting early resolution of disputes, reducing the cost of litigation, creating a more responsive and proportionate system and ensuring better outcomes for court users.