Court Rules

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1. (1)^[2] In this Order:

“enactment” has the same meaning as in the Interpretation Act 2005;

“relevant authority” means:

(a) any Minister,

(b) any Minister of State to whom powers and duties to which a relevant application relates are for the time being delegated by order made in exercise of the power conferred by section 2 of the Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) (No 2) Act 1977,

(c) any local authority (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 2001),

(d) any officer of a Minister, Minister of State or local authority who has been authorised by such Minister, Minister of State or local authority to exercise powers under any enactment,

(e) ^[3] any agency, authority, board, commission, council or other body (not including a company formed under the Companies Act 2014 or under the prior Companies Acts) established by or under any enactment and authorised to exercise powers under any enactment, including, where the context so admits or requires, any committee of, or appointed by, such body, and any chairperson, officer or member of the staff of such body who has been authorised by such body to exercise powers under any enactment,

(f)  any holder of a public office authorised to exercise powers under any enactment,

(g) any tribunal of inquiry (including, where the context so admits or requires, the member, members or chairperson of such tribunal of inquiry,

or

(h) any appointed person within the meaning of section 42(13) of the Garda Síochána Act 2005,

but does not include a court;

“relevant application” means any of the following applications:

(a) an application to the Court under any enactment by a relevant authority to direct, require or compel any person to take any step or do any thing (including, without limitation, an application for a direction to a person to comply with a direction given or request or determination made by that relevant authority) or prohibiting or restraining any person from, or directing any person to cease or refrain from, taking any step or doing any thing ,

(b) an application to the Court under any enactment by a relevant authority (or by any other person permitted by any enactment to apply for such directions) for the Court’s directions to that relevant authority or for the Court’s permission to take any step or do any thing,

(c) an application or reference to the Court under any enactment by a relevant authority or in the course of any proceeding before a relevant authority for a determination or decision by the Court of, or for the opinion of the Court on any question, issue or matter,

(d) an application to the Court under any enactment by a relevant authority for the Court’s confirmation of a direction given by that relevant authority to any person,

(e) an application to the Court by a person authorised by any enactment so to apply, to direct any relevant authority to take any step or do any thing or to direct any relevant authority not to take a step or not to do a thing,

(f)  an application (otherwise than by way of appeal) to the Court by a person authorised by any enactment so to apply, to annul or set aside a decision of a relevant authority or remit the decision to the relevant authority concerned, or

(g) any application to the Court, required, authorised or permitted by any enactment to be brought or made in a summary manner,

but does not include an application for any order which may be made or relief which may be obtained pursuant to Order 84 or Order 84A of these Rules, or a case stated.

(2)       (a) Where any enactment provides for or permits a relevant application to be made to the High Court or to a judge of the High Court and provision for the procedure applicable is not made either by the enactment concerned or by another Order of these Rules, the procedure set out in the following rules of this Order shall apply, subject to any requirement of the relevant enactment.

(b) Where any enactment provides for an application to be made to the Court (other than a relevant application) and the Court determines that it is just and convenient that such application be so determined, the procedure set out in the following rules of this Order shall, subject to any requirement of the relevant enactment, apply to such application.

2.  (1) Save where the application is authorised by the relevant enactment to be made ex parte, it shall be made by originating notice of motion (in this Order hereinafter called “the notice of motion”).  The notice of motion shall be entitled in the matter of the provision of the enactment pursuant to which the application is made.

(2) Where the application is authorised by the relevant enactment to be made ex parte, or where no order, direction or other relief is sought as against any person or persons, the application shall be made by originating motion (in this Order hereinafter called “the motion”) entitled in the matter of the provision of the enactment pursuant to which the application is made and shall additionally be entitled on the application of the applicant.

(3) Where any order, direction or other relief is sought as against any person or persons, the notice of motion shall additionally be entitled as between the applicant and such person or persons as respondents, and shall contain the names and addresses of each respondent.  The notice of motion shall specify the particular relief sought against each respondent and the particular provision or provisions of the relevant enactment authorising the granting of each such relief.

(4) Where a determination of or decision or opinion on any question, or the giving of any direction is sought in the application, the notice of motion shall state as concisely as is reasonably possible the question or direction concerned.

3.  (1) The notice of motion (or, as the case may be, the motion) shall be grounded upon an affidavit sworn by or on behalf of the applicant which shall:

(a) contain a description of the applicant, including particulars sufficient to explain the standing of the applicant to move the application under the relevant provision of the enactment and, where the deponent is not the applicant, the authority of the deponent to make the affidavit on behalf of the applicant;

(b) if the applicant is acting in any representative capacity, or relief is sought against any respondent in a representative capacity, state the capacity of the applicant or, as the case may be, the respondent;

(c) set out the facts or circumstances which it is alleged authorise or entitle the applicant to make, or justify the applicant in making, the application and which support the granting of the relief sought; and

(d) set out the basis of the deponent’s belief as to the existence of the facts or circumstances referred to in the preceding paragraph.

(2) The grounding affidavit shall exhibit copies of all correspondence and documents passing between the applicant and each respondent (if any), or otherwise issuing from any of them, relevant to the matter or matters in respect of which relief is sought.  Subject to any direction the Court may give, such copies shall be incorporated in a single exhibit, in which event they shall be indexed and numbered sequentially in chronological order.

4.  (1) Subject to any provision to the contrary in the relevant enactment, where the application is by notice of motion, not less than twenty one days’ notice of the application shall be given.

(2) Each respondent shall be served with the notice of motion and copies of the grounding affidavit and any exhibits thereto.

5.  (1) Any respondent intending to oppose the application shall file in the Central Office a statement setting out concisely the grounds for such opposition and, if any facts are relied on therein, an affidavit verifying such facts, in which event, a copy of such statement and such affidavit (if any) shall be served upon the applicant and upon every other respondent before the return date of the notice of motion.

(2) The applicant shall be at liberty to file a further affidavit replying to any matter verified in an affidavit of a respondent, in which event a copy of such affidavit shall be served upon each respondent within fourteen days of the service upon him of the respondent’s statement of opposition and verifying affidavit.

(3) In any case where reference is made in an affidavit to a document exhibited previously in an affidavit of any party, the document concerned shall not be further exhibited, but shall be identified by the exhibit reference used in relation to that document in the previous affidavit.

6. An affidavit giving the names and addresses of, and the places and dates of service on, all persons who have been served with the notice of motion, grounding affidavit and exhibits (if any) shall be filed by the applicant before the motion is heard.  If any person who ought under this Order to have been served has not been so served, the affidavit shall state that fact and the reason for it.

7. Save where the Court otherwise directs, any evidence in proceedings to which this Order relates shall be given on affidavit.

8.  (1) On the return date of the notice of motion (or on any adjournment from such date), the Court shall give directions and make orders for the conduct of the proceedings as appear convenient for the determination of the proceedings in a manner which is just, expeditious and likely to minimise the costs of those proceedings which, where appropriate, may include:

(a) directions as to the service of notice of the application on any other person, including mode of service and the time allowed for such service (and the Court may for that purpose adjourn the hearing of the notice of motion or further hearing of such application to a date specified);

(b) directions as to the filing and delivery of any further affidavits by any party or parties;

(c) orders fixing time limits;

(d) directions as to discovery;

(e) directions as to the exchange of memoranda between or among the parties for the purpose of the agreeing by the parties or the fixing by the Court of any issues of fact or law to be determined in the proceedings on the application, or orders fixing such issues;

(f)  a direction that the application be determined by way of plenary hearing, where it appears to the Court that the subject matter of the application is likely to involve a substantial dispute of fact or it is otherwise necessary or desirable in the interests of justice (and the Court may for that purpose make orders and give directions in relation to the exchange of pleadings or points of claim or defence between the parties);

(g) directions as to the furnishing by the parties to the Court and delivery of written submissions;

(h) directions as to the publication of notice of the hearing of the application and the giving of notice in advance of such hearing to any person other than a party to the proceedings who desires to be heard on the hearing of the application.

(2) On the return date of the notice of motion (or on any adjournment from such date), the Court may, where it deems fit, hear any application for relief of an interlocutory nature, whether in the nature of an injunction or otherwise.