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The Court Rules Committees
The rules committees of the various courts have done
quite an amount of work during the past two years.
The District Court Rules Committee continue their
major task in connection with a general revision of the
existing District Court Rules. The Committee have
made—and I have concurred in—the following rules:
the District Court (Extradition Act, 1965) Amending
Rules, 1971, which provides for forms prescribed in the
District Court (Charge Sheet) Rules, 1970, which will
extend to the whole country the system at present in
operation in the Dublin Metropolitan District whereby
the offence charged against an arrested person is entered
on a charge sheet instead of in the Minute Book and
the District Court (Courts Act, 1971) Rules, 1972 which
deal with procedural matters arising from the Courts
Act, 1971. The committee have submitted the District
Court (Summonses and Warrants) Rules, which are
designed to secure a more expeditious discharge of
business in the District Court by making changes in
the procedures relating to the preparation of records
and warrants in the court. These rules are at present
being considered in my Department.
The Circuit Court Rules Committee are making pro-
gress with their work of revising and consolidating the
Circuit Court Rules. I have concurred in rules made by
by them entitled the Circuit Court Rules (fao. 1) 1970,
dealing with certain procedures under the Local Govern-
ment (Planning and Development) Act, 1963, and the
Landlord and Tenant (Ground Rents) Act, 1967. In
addition, the committee have for some time been
examining draft rules, and suggested amendments to
those rules, to deal with procedure under the Succession
Act, 1965.
Five sets of rules, in which I have concurred, were
made by the Superior Courts Rules Committee.
Firstly, there were the Rules of the Superior Courts
(No. 1) 1970 which prescribed the procedure for appeals,
on a point of law, to the Supreme Court from decisions
of the Circuit Court under the Electoral Act, 1963.
These rules also deal with the lodgment of money in
court with the defence and with orders for delivery
of possession.
Secondly, there were the Rules of the Superior Courts
(No. 2) 1970, which replace, by a new rule, the existing
rules covering fees and expenses of witnesses. The new
rules is in the main designed to implement the recom-
mendations of the Committee on Court Practice and
Procedure in Part (2) of their eighth interim report.
The principal change is that the fee for a professional
witness allowable on taxation of party and party costs
is no longer prescribed bv the Rules of the Superior
Courts but will be determined by the Taxing Masters
after consultation from time to time with the profes-
sional associations. The third set of rules in which I
have concurred are the Rules of the Superior Courts
(No. 1), 1971, which provide for the recovery of certain
court fees increased under the Supreme Court and High
Court (Fees) Order, 1970.
Fourthly, there were the Rules of the Superior Courts
(No. 2), 1971, which relate to bankruptcy forms, the
grant of free transcripts to appellants in legal aid cases
in the Court of Criminal Appeal, procedure under the
Redundancy.Payments Act, 1967, and the reckoning
of certain execution costs by reference to Part III of
Appendix W to the Rules of the Superior Courts, 1962.
The fifth and last set of rules made by the Superior
Courts Committee were the Rules of the Superior Courts
(No. 3), 1971, which provide for an increase in the costs
•n respect of shorthand writers and transcripts of
evidence, as prescribed in the Rules of the Superior
Courts, 1962.
The three Courts Rules Committees made new costs
rules which came into operation on Decimal Day, the
15 th February, 1971. The effect of the new rules was to
substitute the new decimal currency equivalents for
amounts of costs previously prescribed in pounds,
shillings and pence.
E.E.C Legislation
A division has been established in my Department
to continue the work of examining the implications for
the Department of entry to the EEC and to take the
necessary consequential action. The Department is con-
sidering in conjunction with the Attorney General's
Legal Committee what legal provisions will be required,
in so far as the Department is concerned, to implement
the Treaties, Community secondary legislation and the
Rules of the European Court of Justice. The provisions
required are likely to include amendments to existing
legislation, certain new legislative measures and new
rules of court. The Department is also considering the
EEC convention on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement
of Civil and Commercial Judgments, with a view to
accession by Ireland to the Convention. The Convention
has been ratified by three of the existing six member
states and it will come into force when all the member
states have ratified it The Accession Treaty provides that
the new member states shall enter into negotiations with
the Six in order to make any necessary adjustments to it
These negotiations have already begun, but they are
still at an exploratory stage in the field of " technical
adaptations ". We have received and are examining a
preliminary draft of an EEC Convention on Bankruptcy,
Composition and Related Proceedings. This draft is still
being considered by the Six and I understand that
negotiations on the terms of the convention will not take
place with the applicant States until a new draft has
been prepared in the light of the views of the existing
members.
The Adoption Board
The Adoption Board made 1,305 orders in 1971, 109
less than in 1970. The proportion of children placed by
Adoption Societies was 85 per cent as compared with
83 per cent in 1970.1 should like to place on record my
appreciation of the excellent work that is being done
both by the board itself and by the Adoption Societies,
of whom there are 21. Six hundred and fifty-six of the
orders made in 1971 were in respect of boys and 649
were in respect of girls. The board continues to hold
sittings outside Dublin so as to facilitate prospective
adopters. Forty-eight of the total of 92 meetings held
during the year were held in various centres outside
Dublin.
Aliens and Naturalisation
There has been some increase in recent years in the
number of aliens registered as being resident here for
three months or more. The number so registered on
3st December, 1971, was 6,088 as against 5,126 in
31st December, 1970. The influx of visitors subject to
immigration controls continues to increase at a rapid
rate. Over 222,000 visitors came here in 1971 from
places other than the North of Ireland and Great Britain
as compared with 190,000 such visitors in 1970. Those
figures do not include British subjects, who are exempt
from control on a reciprocal basis. The increasing num-
ber of foreign visitors coming here creates various
administrative problems for the immigation service, and
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