Hutchinson v Minister for Justice

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Judgment Date: 01 January 1993
• Date: 01 January 1993
• Docket Number: [1991 No. 198 J.R.]
• Court: High Court

Hutchinson v. Minister for Justice

Michael Hutchinson

Applicant

and

The Minister for Justice, Respondent and The Attorney General, The Minister for Foreign Affairs, The Minister for Justice and An Taoiseach, Notice Parties

[1991 No. 198 J.R.]

High Court

International law - Council of Europe - Convention on Transfer of Sentenced Persons - State a signatory to Convention - Whether State obliged to ratify Convention - Whether 'principle of good faith' in international law required State to ratify a treaty to which it was a signatory - Whether a discretion to ratify international treaties - Convention on Transfer of Sentenced Persons, 1983, Article 18 - Constitution of Ireland, 1937, Article 29.

Constitution - International agreements - Council of Europe - Convention on Transfer of Sentenced Persons - Constitutional requirement that international agreements to which State is a party be laid before Dáil Éireann éireann - Whether unratified, but signed, Convention has status of an international agreement - Whether constitutional requirement that agreement which has not been ratified by State be laid before Dáil Éireann éireann- Constitution of Ireland, 1937, Article 29, s. 5, sub-s. 1.

Article 29, s. 5, sub-s. 1 of the Constitution of Ireland, 1937, provides that "every international agreement to which the State becomes a party shall be laid before Dáil Éireann éireann."

The Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons was passed by the Council of Europe in 1983 and was signed on behalf of the Irish Government in 1986 by the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Article 18, s. 2 of the Convention provides:—

"This Convention shall enter into force . . . after . . . three member States of the Council of Europe have expressed their consent to be bound by the Convention . . ."

Article 18, s. 3 of the Convention provides:—

"In respect of any member State which subsequently expresses its consent to be bound by it, the Convention shall enter into force . . . after . . . ratification . . ."

The Convention was ratified by three member States (France, Spain and Sweden) in 1985. It was not ratified by Ireland.

The applicant was a British citizen who was serving a life sentence imposed on him by the Central Criminal Court in 1980. As his parents lived in England he wished to be transferred to a prison in that jurisdiction. He sought an order of mandamus requiring the respondent to introduce the necessary legislation to enable ratification of the Convention to take place. It was argued on his behalf that, by reason of having signed the Convention, Ireland had an obligation in international law to ratify it and was in breach of what was termed the "principle of good faith" in failing to do so. Further it was contended that the State was in breach of Article 29, s. 5, sub-s. 1 of the Constitution.

Held by Blayney J., in refusing to make an order of...