The Government yesterday sanctioned the appointment of eight new judges to speed up the hearing of cases in the High Court, Circuit Court and District Court.
Provision to appoint the new judges will be made by an amendment to the Civil Liability and Courts Bill which is now before the Dáil and which the Government hopes will be enacted before the Dáil summer recess. The Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, hopes the new judges will be in place later this year.
The eight new members of the bench will comprise three High Court judges, three Circuit Court judges and two District Court judges. The Department of Justice said: "The appointment of these additional judges will speed up the hearing of cases in each of the courts concerned and reduce delays in the delivery of judgements."
The Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, said the additional judicial resources "will greatly enhance the capability of the courts to deal with an ever increasing workload, both in terms of criminal and civil business. The provision of additional High Court judges, in particular, will assist in further reducing delays in the Central Criminal Court - the court which deals with murder and rape trials".