The Supreme Court has transferred 258 cases from its waiting list directly to the new Court of Appeal, in accordance with a direction by the Chief Justice, Ms. Justice Susan Denham. The move amounts to a 44 per cent reduction in the Supreme Court’s 585-strong caseload, which has left the Court struggling through a four year backlog.
The new Court of Appeal will have both civil and criminal jurisdiction. The Chief Justice, in agreement with her colleagues on the Supreme Court, further announced that appeals pending before the Court of Criminal Appeal which have not yet been fully or partly heard are also to be transferred to the new Court. This will free up the judges of the Supreme Court to consider more substantive issues of law, as the Court of Criminal Appeal sits as a three-judge Court, composed of one Supreme Court judge, and two from the High Court. The Court of Criminal Appeal will continue to operate until the outstanding 27 appeals which have already been fully or partly heard have been processed.
There are 327 appeals already certified as ready for hearing which will remain with the Supreme Court. But the reshuffle has nonetheless been heralded by the Chief Justice as the most significant overhaul of the Courts structure since independence. The automatic right of appeal from the High Court to the Supreme Court has been replaced, and appeals will be sent to the Court of Appeal. Decision of the Court of Appeal are final, unless the Supreme Court chooses to exercise its power to hear cases, where there is a matter of general public importance or where the interests of justice so demand.
Eight of the nine appointees to the new Court will be promoted from the High Court, with a tenth appointment expected in the coming weeks. The Government has nominated five Circuit Court Judges, two solicitors and one senior counsel for appointment to replace those moved from the High Court.
The announcements coincide with calls to establish a special family court, with the launch of the second interim report of the Child Care Law Reporting Project, in October of this year. Dr. Carol Coulter, author of that report and former legal affairs editor of The Irish Times highlighted that “some courts are overwhelmed by the sheer volume of [childcare] cases they have to deal with”.