Judicial Review and Non-Jury Lists – Waiting Times

The Courts Service has advised that the waiting time for a hearing date for certified non-jury cases has recently been reduced from a period in excess of three years to less than three months.

Non-jury and chancery cases have been fixed for hearing at a number of courthouses outside Dublin, thereby clearing significant backlogs in lists. To date, cases have been listed at Bruff, Castlebar, Cork, Dundalk, Ennis, Galway, Limerick, Tullamore and Tralee. This approach has allowed the listing of an additional 140 non-jury cases in Hilary Term 2008.

At the last non-jury list to fix dates, all remaining cases in the list were assigned hearing dates before the summer vacation. In all, 135 certified nonjury actions were listed for hearing at Castlebar, Cork, Dundalk, Trim and Tullamore for both Easter and Trinity terms 2008. Practitioners wishing to ascertain the status of a case can check it online using the High Court search facility on www.courts.ie.

With additional judicial resources and the resultant increase in the throughput of cases, pressure for courtroom space in Dublin has increased significantly. The President of the High Court has directed that on any day where there is a shortage of courtrooms in Dublin, cases will be assigned to venues close to Dublin for hearing. It is also very likely that, in the near future, non-jury miscellaneous matters will be listed for hearing at venues outside Dublin. This ensures that cases get dates quicker, that High Court business is spread across the country, and that courthouses are fully utilised.

Queries in respect of nonjury cases assigned to provincial venues should be directed to Paul Gunning, Registrar, Courts Service, tel: 01 888 6691.

Judicial review cases are currently taking approximately 18 months to get a hearing date from the time they are transferred into the list to fix dates. This waiting period does not apply to cases to which priority is given or to cases that can be heard within a period of two hours. Short cases are listed for hearing on Mondays and are heard within a few weeks of the court being notified that the case is ready for hearing.

Queries in respect of the nonjury or judicial review list to fix dates should be directed to Angela Denning, Registrar, Courts Service, tel: 01 888 6454.