Circuit Court Rules (General) 2007

• Statutory Instrument No.: 312/2007
• Published date: 29 June 2007

S.I. No. 312 of 2007

CIRCUIT COURT RULES (GENERAL) 2007

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 29th June, 2007.

We, the Circuit Court Rules Committee, constituted pursuant to the provisions of section 69 of the Courts of Justice Act 1936 , and section 12 of the Courts of Justice Act 1947 , by virtue of the powers conferred on us by section 66 of the Courts of Justice Act 1924 and section 70 of the Courts of Justice Act 1936 , (as applied by section 48 of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 ) and section 27 of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 , and of all other powers enabling us in this behalf, do hereby, with the concurrence of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, make the annexed Rules of Court.

Dated this 6th day of March 2007.

Signed: MATTHEW DEERY.

(Chairman of the Circuit Court Rules Committee)

FERGAL FOLEY GERARD J. DOHERTY ANN SPAINE NOEL RUBOTHAM SUSAN RYAN (Secretary)

I concur in the making of the above Rules of Court.

Dated this 22nd day of June 2007

Signed: BRIAN LENIHAN

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

S.I. No. 312 of 2007

CIRCUIT COURT RULES (GENERAL) 2007

1. These Rules, which may be cited as the Circuit Court Rules (General) 2007, shall come into operation on the 20th day of July 2007.

2. These Rules shall be construed together with the Circuit Court Rules 2001.

3. The “Interpretation of Terms” provisions of the Circuit Court Rules are amended by the substitution therein for the definition of “domicile” of the following—

“9. “domicile” is to be determined in accordance with the provisions

of Section 15 of the 1998 Act and Articles 52 and 53 of the 1968 Convention, or as the case may be, the provisions of Articles 59 and 60 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001.”

4. The “Annulment of Existing Rules” provisions of the Circuit Court Rules are amended by the deletion therein of the the sentence “The Interpretation Act, 1937 , shall apply to these Rules.”

5. Order 1 of the Circuit Court Rules is amended by the deletion of Rule 6.

6. Order 5 of the Circuit Court Rules is amended by the substitution for Rules 8 and 9 of the following—

“8. The Consent prescribed by Section 22(1)(b) of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 which provides for the enlargement of the jurisdiction of the Court by consent of the parties shall be in the form set forth in Form 1 of the Schedule of Forms, and shall be lodged with the County Registrar either before or at any time during the hearing.

9. Whenever an action, cause or matter is instituted which the court has not jurisdiction to try and determine, if the want of jurisdiction appears on the face of the originating document, the Court shall strike out the action, cause or matter with costs, unless the Consent prescribed by Section 22(1)(b) of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 has been signed. Whenever an action, cause or matter is instituted which the court has not jurisdiction to try and determine, if the want of jurisdiction relates to venue and appears on the face of the originating document, the Court may transfer the action, cause or matter to the appropriate circuit or may strike out the action, cause or matter with costs as it considers appropriate.”

7. Order 6 of the Circuit Court Rules is amended by the substitution for Rule 4 of the following—

“4. No action, cause or matter shall be defeated by reason of the misjoinder or non-joinder of parties, and the Judge may in every action, cause or matter deal with the subject in controversy so far as regards the rights and interests of the parties actually before him. The Judge may, at any stage of the proceedings, either upon or without the application of any party, and on such terms as may appear to him to be just, order that the name of any party, whether plaintiff or defendant, who has been improperly joined, be struck out, and that the name of any person who ought to have been joined as a party, or whose presence before the Court may be necessary in order to enable the Judge to adjudicate upon and settle all the questions involved in the cause or matter, be added as a plaintiff or a defendant. No person shall be added as a plaintiff suing without a next friend, or as the next friend of a plaintiff under any disability, without his consent in writing thereto. Every person whose name is so added as defendant shall be served with a Civil Bill in such manner as may be prescribed by any Order of the Court, and the action, cause or matter, as against such party, shall be deemed to have begun only on the making of the Order adding such party.”

8. Order 11 of the Circuit Court Rules is amended by the substitution for Rule 3 of the following—

“3. The Civil Bill shall be presented to the Office, sealed, marked with the record number by the proper officer and shall thereupon be deemed to be issued and shall thereafter be entered in the cause book in date and numerical order of issue. At the time of issuing, the proper officer shall mark upon the duplicate Civil Bill the date of issue, full details in relation to stamping and the record number assigned to the Civil Bill. No Civil Bill shall be served until it shall have been so issued. In presenting such Civil Bill together with the duplicate thereof to the Office for issuing, such presentation may be by post or in person. In circumstances in which the Civil Bill has been presented by post, the proper officer shall return the Civil Bill to the Plaintiff or the Plaintiff’s solicitor, as appropriate, by ordinary pre-paid post.”

9. Order 13 of the Circuit Court Rules is amended

(1) by the substitution in paragraph (o) of Rule 1 of “;” for “.” and by the insertion in Rule 1, immediately following paragraph (o), of the following—

“(p) any relief is sought in proceedings commenced in accordance with Order 69 of these Rules.”, and

(2) by the substitution for Rule 5 of the following—

“5. Applications under this Order shall be made before the issue of the document, and the affidavit to ground the same shall, when no proceeding is pending, be entitled as between the parties to the intended proceeding and ‘‘In the Matter of the Courts of Justice Acts 1924 to 1961 and the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Acts 1961 to 2003’’.

10. Order 14B of the Circuit Court Rules (inserted by the Circuit Court Rules (Service in Member States of Judicial and Extra-Judicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters) 2004 ( S.I. No. 883 of 2004 )) is amended by the substitution in Rule 17 of the words “originating document” for the words “originating Summons”.

11. Order 18 of the Circuit Court Rules is amended by the substitution for Rule 1 of the following—

“1. (1) The County Registrar, within the County to which he is assigned, shall be the proper officer of the Court in respect of all its jurisdiction, and shall be responsible for the discharge of all duties imposed upon him or upon the Office, by Statute or otherwise, and for the safe custody of all documents and records of the Court. He shall cause to be kept such files and books of record, and in such form, as may from time to time be prescribed by the Minister.

In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, and without prejudice to any other provisions of these Rules, the County Registrar may, in accordance with Section 34(1) and the Second Schedule of the Courts and Court Officers Act 1995 make the following orders—

(i) Any order which may be made as of course.

(ii) An order for a statement of the names of persons who may be co-partners in any firm suing or being sued in an action or matter.

(iii) An order for enlargement of the time for doing any act or taking any step in an action or matter.

(iv) An order for discovery, limited or general, or inspection of documents or real or personal property, or delivery of interrogatories.

(v) A conditional order for the appointment of a receiver by way of equitable execution and, if that appointment is consented to or is uncontested, an order for the appointment of the receiver, and an order for the discharge of a receiver.

(va) A conditional order of garnishee and, if the order is consented to or is uncontested, an order of garnishee.

(vi) An order to dismiss an action with costs for want of prosecution or for failure to make an affidavit of discovery or to answer interrogatories.

(vii) An order to strike out a defence with costs for failure to make an affidavit of discovery or to answer interrogatories.

(viii) An order for the taking of evidence on commission.

(ix) An order on an application for directions as to—

(I) service of a civil bill or other originating document not inter partes, or

(II) any other procedure in an action or matter.

(x) An order adding or substituting a party in any proceeding.

(xi) An order giving liberty to intervene and appear.

(xii) An order for the amendment of pleadings on consent.

(xiii) An order to receive a consent and make the same a rule of court where the parties are sui juris.

(xiv) An order under the Bankers' Books Evidence Acts 1879 and 1959.

(xv) An order for payment out of Court of funds standing to the credit of an infant on attaining majority, or (if so authorised by order of a judge) for his or her benefit during minority.

(xvi) An order in uncontested cases to have an account taken or inquiry made.

(xvii) An order for the issue, for service outside the jurisdiction of a citation to see proceedings in contentious probate matters.

(xviii) An order for the issue of a citation to lodge in court a grant of probate or letters of administration in contentious probate matters.

(xix) An order giving liberty to file a supplemental affidavit of scripts.

(xx) An order for the lodgement of scripts by any party.

(xxi) An order appointing a receiver in a place of...