Judges warned to keep out of debate on appeals court

Judges have been warned to steer clear of the referendum campaign surrounding the proposed setting-up of a new Court of Appeal.

The move followed comments from the Chief Justice that the workload of the Supreme Court had reached an “indefensible and unsustainable” level.

Mrs Justice Susan Denham was speaking in the context of the Oct 4 poll on creating the institution intended to ease delays in the appeals process. While stressing that as a judge she should not advocate how people should vote in any referendum, or enter a political debate Ms Justice Denham said: “However, it seems incumbent on me as Chief Justice and as head of one of our three branches of government [to] — in some way — set out the context in which we operate and within which people are making decisions.”

If we had a Court of Appeal, she said, it would hear routine appeal cases.

Ex-Fianna Fáil minister Willie O’Dea said: “She can explain what is at issue, but advocacy is not something that people of her rank should engage in.”

Barrister and UCD lecturer Paul Anthony McDermott said: “While not advocating a yes or no vote, using words like ‘unsustainable’ is clearly urging that something should be done... But there does not seem to be a plan B, it is either put up with five-year delays or create a court of appeal.”

Ms Justice Denham said: “Many cases heard by the Supreme Court... do not raise important questions of law and constitutional law, nor do they involve a matter of general importance.”

She was speaking in Limerick County Courthouse at the opening of the combined district and circuit court office.

Last year, she said there was a 21% increase in the number of appeals filed to the Supreme Court — 605 new cases and already this year over 400 new cases have gone to the court.

“This is an indefensible and unsustainable situation. Behind all of the statistics there are human stories or people with real legal difficulties waiting to be resolved,” she said.