Courts and court officers act 2009

• Act Number: 36
• Enactment Date: 24 November 2009

Number 36 of 2009
COURTS AND COURT OFFICERS ACT 2009
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
PART 1
Preliminary and General
Section
1. Short title and commencement.
2. Definition.
3. Regulations.
4. Expenses.
PART 2
Temporary Custody
5. Definitions (Part 2).
6. Persons held for section 7 purposes.
7. Purposes of temporary custody.
8. Beginning and end of temporary custody.
9. Consequences of placement in temporary custody.
10. Handing over of medications, etc., when person in temporary custody.
11. Functions of holding area officer.
12. Regulations relating to temporary custody.
PART 3
Combined Court Office
13. Definitions (Part 3).
14. Establishment of combined court offices.
15. Variation of functions or dissolution of combined court office.
16. Consultations.
17. Special Criminal Court.
18. Combined court office: deemed powers and functions.
19. Combined court office manager.
20. Management and control of combined court office.
21. Staff of combined court office.
22. Functions of staff.
23. Continuity of administration of justice not to be affected.
24. Amendment of Courts Service Act 1998.
PART 4
Miscellaneous Provisions
25. Amendment of section 22 of Criminal Procedure Act 1967.
26. Amendment of section 24 of Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851.
Acts Referred to
Court Officers Act 1926 1926, No. 26 Courts Service Act 1998 1998, No. 8 Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 1994, No. 2 Criminal Justice Act 2007 2007, No. 29 Criminal Procedure Act 1967 1967, No. 12 Offences Against the State Act 1939 1939, No. 13 Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851 14 & 15 Vic., c.93 Prisons Act 2007 2007, No. 10
Number 36 of 2009
COURTS AND COURT OFFICERS ACT 2009
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE PLACEMENT IN TEMPORARY CUSTODY OF CERTAIN DETAINED PERSONS IN ORDER TO FACILITATE THEIR APPEARANCE BEFORE A COURT; TO PROVIDE FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF COMBINED COURT OFFICES; TO AMEND THE COURTS SERVICE ACT 1998, THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ACT 1967 AND THE PETTY SESSIONS (IRELAND) ACT 1851, AND TO PROVIDE FOR RELATED MATTERS.
[24th November, 2009]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:
PART 1 Preliminary and General
	Short title and commencement.	1.— (1) This Act may be cited as the Courts and Court Officers Act 2009.
	(2) This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provisions and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.
	Definition.	2.— In this Act “ Minister ” means the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.
	Regulations.	3.— (1) The Minister may make regulations prescribing any matter or thing which is referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed.
	(2) Regulations under this Act may contain such incidental, supplementary and consequential provisions as appear to the Minister to be necessary or expedient for the purpose of the regulations.
	(3) Every regulation under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it has been madeand, if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.
	Expenses.	4.— The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.
PART 2 Temporary Custody
	Definitions (Part 2).	5.— In this Part—
	“ Act of 2007” means the Prisons Act 2007 ;
	“governor” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2007;
	“holding area officer” means—
	(a) a governor, or a member of the Garda Síochána, in whose temporary custody a person is placed under section 6 ,
	(b) a person who assumes the duties of a holding area officer under section 11 (6),
	(c) a member in charge who assumes the powers and functions of a holding area officer under paragraph (a) of section 11 (7), or
	(d) a member of the Garda Síochána to whom the powers and functions referred to in paragraph (c) are transferred under paragraph (b) of section 11 (7);
	“member in charge” means a member of the Garda Síochána who is in charge of a Garda Síochána station referred to in section 11 (7);
	“Prison Rules” means the Prison Rules 2007 ( S.I. No. 252 of 2007 );
	“prisoner” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2007;
	“prison officer” has the same meaning as it has in section 19(6) (as inserted by section 41(4) of the Act of 2007) of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 ;
	“temporary custody” shall be construed in accordance with subsections (1) and (2) of section 6 .
	Persons held for section 7 purposes.	6.— (1) A prisoner may be placed in the temporary custody of a member of the Garda Síochána where the placement is for a purpose referred to in section 7 .
	(2) A person who is lawfully in the custody of the Garda Síochána may be placed in the temporary custody of a governor where the placement is for a purpose referred to in section 7 .
	(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsections (1) and (2), a person who is placed in temporary custody under either of those subsections may be placed in a place in or adjacent to a court building in which the appearance or hearing referred to in section 7 concerned is to be held.
	(4) A prisoner or a person who is lawfully in the custody of the Garda Síochána who is not placed in temporary custody under subsection (1) or (2) may be placed in a place referred to in subsection (3) for a purpose referred to in section 7 .
	Purposes of temporary custody.	7.— A prisoner or other person may be placed in temporary custody under section 6 for the purposes of facilitating—
	(a) a court appearance by that person, or
	(b) his or her participation, as a witness or in another capacity, in a court hearing involving him or her.
	Beginning and end of temporary custody.	8.— (1) Without prejudice to any other enactment, the temporary custody of a prisoner under section 6 (1)—
	(a) shall commence from the moment the prisoner is placed in the custody of the holding area officer, and
	(b) shall cease from—
	(i) such time as the prisoner is returned to the governor in whose custody he or she was before the temporary custody commenced, or
	(ii) such time as the prisoner is released by order of the court,
	as the case may be.
	(2) Without prejudice to any other enactment, the temporary custody of a person under section 6 (2)—
	(a) shall commence from the moment the person is placed in the custody of the holding area officer, and
	(b) shall cease from—
	(i) such time as the person is returned to the person in whose custody he or she was before the temporary custody commenced or another member of the Garda Síochána, or
	(ii) such time as the person is released by order of the court,
	as the case may be.
	Consequences of placement in temporary custody.	9.— (1) A prisoner who is placed in temporary custody under section 6 (1) shall be deemed, for the duration of the placement, to remain in the custody of the governor in whose custody he or she was before being so placed.
	(2) A person who is placed in temporary custody under section 6 (2) shall be deemed, for the duration of the placement, to remain in the custody of the Garda Síochána.
	Handing over of medications, etc., when person in temporary custody.	10.— (1) On placing a person in temporary custody under section 6 , the governor or member of the Garda Síochána in whose custody that person was shall hand to the holding area officer concerned—
	(a) any medication or prescription for medication that he or she possesses in respect of the person,
	(b) any information relating to the person’s health that he or she is aware of, and
	(c) any additional articles, documents or information that the Minister may prescribe.
	(2) When a holding area officer returns a person placed in temporary custody under section 6 to a person mentioned in subsection (1)(b)(i) or subsection (2)(b)(i) of section 8 , the holding area officer shall hand to that person—
	(a) any medication or prescription for medication that he or she possesses in respect of the person who was intemporary custody,
	(b) any information relating to the person’s health that he or she is aware of, and
	(c) any additional articles, documents or information that the Minister may prescribe.
	Functions of holding area officer.	11.— (1) Notwithstanding section 9 , a holding area officer shall, as regards a person who has been placed in his or her temporarycustody under section 6 —
	(a) prevent his or her escape from lawful custody,
	(b) prevent the commission of an offence by him or her,
	(c) ensure that he or she behaves in an orderly and disciplined fashion,
	(d) bring him or her to a court or court office, as required,
	(e) ensure his or her appearance before a court, and
	(f) comply with any order of a court relating to his or her custody, treatment or transfer.
	(2) A holding area officer may search, in accordance with the Prison Rules, the person of any person who has been placed in his or her temporary custody under section 6 if he or she is of the opinion that it is necessary to do so to perform his or her functions under this Part.
	(3) A holding area officer may, where necessary, use all reasonable force in the performance of his...