Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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1501.To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the current plans for reform of the probate system, in particular for any transition to an online system, as well as the reopening of in-person probate services to the public; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31664/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware as Minister for Justice, I have no role in the exercise of Probate functions.

The Probate Office is an office of the High Court, and management of the courts is the responsibility of the judiciary and the Courts Service, which, under the Courts Service Act 1998 and given the separations of powers in the Constitution, are independent in exercising their functions. Probate functions are also carried out by County Registrars at District Probate Registries in 14 provincial court offices.

The Probate General Office and Rules Office in Dublin is open to the legal profession and general public every morning Monday to Friday to facilitate general enquiries, copy requests, filing of court applications, Probate Officer Orders and caveats. There are no plans to re-open the Probate Seat Office for the lodgement of solicitor applications in person as to do so reduces the resources assigned to deal with applications on hand.

As part of its ongoing Modernisation Programme, the Courts Service is working to digitally transform the way in which applications for probate are processed.

The eProbate project will deliver a facility to submit and track applications for Grants of Representation online via a public facing portal. This new digital solution is currently in development, with an expected public launch and roll-out in the first half of 2025.

The public facing portal will act as a single point of contact for users to submit and track their applications through the entire process. The electronic submission of applications through the online portal, combined with automated validation of key information at submission time will enable faster and more efficient processing of applications, with the aim of reducing waiting times.

At the same time, the Courts Service is aware of its need to reduce waiting times while the eProbate project is underway. In this regard, it is prioritising the recruitment of additional staff to help in this task.

Furthermore, the Report of the Expert Group on Conveyancing and Probate was approved by Government and published earlier this week. This Group was established last December by the then Taoiseach, to carry out a review of current conveyancing and probate processes. The Group made recommendations on changes to both processes to make them more efficient and streamlined.

An Implementation Group will now be established to ensure oversight and delivery. My Officials will actively engage in that Group and ensure key conveyancing and probate recommendations relating to this Department and the Courts Service are actioned without delay.