County Officers and Courts (Ireland) Act 1877

• Jurisdiction: Ireland

County Officers and Courts (Ireland) Act, 1877

(40 & 41 Vict.) CHAPTER 56.

An Act to amend the Laws relating to County Officers and to Courts of Quarter Sessions and Civil Bill Courts in Ireland.

[14th August 1877]

W HEREAS it is expedient to amend the laws relating to the offices of Clerk of the Crown and Clerk of the Peace, and to the Courts of Quarter Sessions and Civil Bill Courts in Ireland, to provide for the union of such offices, and to extend the jurisdiction of such courts:

Be it therefore enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

Preliminary.

1 Application of Act.

This Act shall apply to Ireland only.

2 Short title.

This Act may be cited as ‘The County Officers and Courts (Ireland) Act, 1877.’

3 Title of the chairman.

The chairmen, not being Recorders, shall, from and after the commencement of this Act, be styled ‘County Court Judges and Chairmen of Quarter Sessions.’

4 Commencement of Act.

Parts I., III., and IV. of this Act shall come into operation upon the passing of this Act. Part II. of this Act shall come into operation upon the first day of January one thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.

5 Short title of 14 & 15 Vict. c. 57.

The Act passed in the session of Parliament held in the fourteenth and fifteenth years of the reign of Her present Majesty, chapter fifty-seven, may be cited as ‘The Civil Bill Courts (Ireland) Act, 1851.’

6 Repeal of statutes.

The several enactments mentioned in Schedule (A.) to this Act shall be and the same are hereby repealed, but this repeal shall not affect—

a .) Anything heretofore duly done or suffered under any enactment hereby repealed; or

b .) Any right or liability heretofore acquired, accrued, or incurred under any enactment hereby repealed; or

c .) Any security heretofore given under any enactment hereby repealed; or

d .) Any liability, penalty, forfeiture, or punishment incurred in respect of any offence heretofore committed against any enactment hereby repealed; or

e .) Any proceeding heretofore duly instituted; or

f .) Any investigation, legal proceeding, or remedy in respect of any such right, liability, security, penalty, forfeiture, or punishment as aforesaid; and any such investigation, legal proceeding, or remedy may be instituted, carried on, and enforced as if this Act had not been passed

7 Interpretation of terms.

In this Act—

The term ‘Lord Lieutenant’ shall mean the Lord Lieutenant-General and General Governor of Ireland, and shall include the Lords Justices or other chief governors or governor of Ireland for the time being:

The term a ‘Lord Chancellor’ shall mean the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and shall include the Lord Keeper or Lords Commissioners for the custody of the Great Seal in Ireland:

The term ‘Court of Chancery’ shall mean the High Court of Chancery in Ireland:

The term ‘Treasury’ shall mean the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury for the time being, or any two of them:

The term ‘county’ shall include a county of a city, county of a town, county of a town and city, city and county, and riding of a county, and any county and borough in which a union of the offices of Clerk of the Crown and Clerk of the Peace shall have been made pursuant to this Act:

The term ‘grand jury’ shall include any town council authorised to make presentments:

The term ‘borough’ shall mean any borough, not being a county of a city or county of a town, to which a separate commission of the peace has been or shall be granted:

The term ‘chairman’ shall mean the chairman of quarter sessions of any county or counties, and shall include each of the Recorders of the cities of Dublin, Cork, and Londonderry, and of the towns of Belfast and Galway respectively:

In Parts II., III., and IV. of this Act the term ‘Clerk of the Peace’ shall include the Clerk of the Crown and Peace:

The term ‘Civil Bill Court’ shall include any court for the transaction of civil business held before any chairman or recorder, and any land court, and any court of quarter sessions for the transaction of licensing business:

The term ‘Registrar of Civil Bills’ or registrar shall include the registrar of any Civil Bill Court or Recorder's Court.

PART I.

Officers.

8 Union of offices of Clerk of the Crown and Clerk of the Peace.

(1)8. (1.) Whenever either of the offices of Clerk of the Crown or of Clerk of the Peace for any county or borough shall become or be vacant, if the person then holding the other of the said offices shall be willing to accept the vacant office, the Lord Lieutenant may order that the said offices be united, and may appoint to the united office such person as aforesaid. The said offices shall thenceforth remain united, and the person holding the same shall be called the Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the county or borough. If such person shall refuse to accept such appointment, or if the Lord Lieutenant shall not deem it expedient to appoint him, the Lord Lieutenant may appoint to the vacant office a fit and proper person to be temporary Clerk of the Crown or temporary Clerk of the Peace, as the case may be. The temporary clerk so appointed shall hold such office and perform all the duties of Clerk of the Crown or Clerk of the Peace, as the case may be, for the county or borough until he shall die, or resign, or be removed by the Lord Lieutenant, or until the other of the said offices shall become vacant, whichever shall first happen:

(2) (2.) Whenever both the said offices for any county or borough shall become or be vacant at the same time, the Lord Lieutenant shall order that the said offices be united, and shall appoint to the united office one fit and proper person, qualified as herein-after mentioned, and the said offices shall thenceforth remain united, and the person holding the same shall be called the Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the county or borough:

(3) (3.) Whenever both the said offices for any borough shall become or be vacant at the same time, and the Lord Lieutenant shall deem it expedient to unite the said offices with the office of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for any county surrounding or adjoining such borough, the Lord Lieutenant may order that the said offices be united with the office of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for such county, and may appoint to the office of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the borough the Clerk of the Crown and Peace for such county, or if there shall be no such Clerk of the Crown and Peace, or if he shall refuse to accept such appointment, may appoint a fit and proper person to be temporary Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the borough; and the temporary clerk so appointed shall hold such office and perform all the duties of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the borough until he shall die, or resign, or be removed by the Lord Lieutenant, or until the Clerk of the Crown and Peace for any such county shall be appointed to the office of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the borough, whichever shall first happen; and upon the appointment of one person to the same, the offices of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for such borough and of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for such county shall be and thenceforth remain united, and the person holding the same shall be called Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the county and borough:

(4) (4.) Whenever the office of Clerk of the Peace for any borough for which the office of Clerk of the Crown does not exist shall become or be vacant, the Lord Lieutenant may order that it be united with the office of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for any county adjoining or surrounding such borough, and may appoint to the office of Clerk of the Peace for such borough the Clerk of the Grown and Peace for such county, or if there shall be no such Clerk of the Crown and Peace, or if he shall refuse to accept such appointment, may appoint a fit and proper person to be temporary Clerk of the Peace for the borough; and the temporary clerk so appointed shall hold such office and perform all the duties of Clerk of the Peace for the borough until he shall die, or resign, or be removed by the Lord Lieutenant, or until the Clerk of the Crown and Peace for any such county shall be appointed to the office of Clerk of the Peace for the borough, whichever shall first happen; and upon the appointment of one person to the same, the offices of Clerk of the Peace for such borough and of Clerk of the Crown and Peace for such county shall be and thenceforth remain united, and the person holding the same shall be called Clerk of the Crown and Peace for the county and borough:

(5) (5.) At any time after the passing of this Act, and from time to time until such union of offices as aforesaid, the Lord Chancellor may, with the consent of the Treasury, if he shall deem it necessary for the proper discharge of the duties of Registrar of the Civil Bill Court of any county or borough, appoint by order a fit and proper person to be temporary Registrar of such Civil Bill Court; and every person so appointed shall hold such office, and discharge such duties in relation to such court, as such order may direct, until he shall die, or resign, or be removed by the Lord Chancellor, or until the office of Clerk of the Peace for such county or borough shall become vacant, whichever shall first happen; and upon the occurrence of such vacancy, provision shall be made for the proper discharge of such duties by the appointment of a temporary Clerk of the Peace or of a Clerk of the Crown and Peace.

9 Appointment of additional...