Two new Supreme Court judges nominated by Government

Two serving High Court judges are to be nominated by the Government to the Supreme Court.

A Government statement said arrangements will be made to formally nominate Ms Justice Mary Laffoy and Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne for appointment by the President, Michael D Higgins.

The appointments follow new legislation enacted this week which allows for the extra positions and brings the total number of Supreme Court judges to 10, including the Chief Justice.

The Courts and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013 was passed by both houses of the Oireachtas last week and signed by the President yesterday.

The current delay for cases before the Supreme Court is now over four years meaning that someone lodging an appeal with the Supreme Court today would be likely to wait until 2017 for a hearing.

The Court of Criminal Appeal also has significant delays.

“The appointment of these additional judges will help reduce waiting periods by allowing two divisions of the Supreme Court to sit routinely and facilitating additional sittings of the Court of Criminal Appeal,” the statement said. “It should be noted that both these courts have arranged sittings during September this year.”

The proposed establishment of a dedicated Court of Appeal to encompass both civil and criminal jurisdiction is also designed to address the problem of delays. The proposal will be put to a referendum on October 4th.

Ms Justice Laffoy was born in 1945 and educated in University College Dublin and King's Inns. She was called to the Bar in 1971 and to the Inner Bar in 1987. She was appointed as a High Court judge in 1995 and presided over the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse between 1999 and 2003.

Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne was born in 1956 and was also educated in UCD and King’s Inns. She was called to the Bar in 1977 and appointed as a circuit court judge in 1996. She was appointed to the High Court in 2004.