The Gazette 1996

GAZETTE

L A W B R I E F

GAZETTE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1996

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The Courts and Court Officers Act, 1995: A Significant Enactment

by Dr. Eamonn G. Hall

The Forensic Wig

December 15 , 1995 marked the start

of a new era:

The Courts and Court

Officers Act, 1995

was signed into

law by President Robinson. During

the debates in the Oireachtas,

lawyers and the media had been

preoccupied with the issue of

"bareheaded justice" - the cult of

the wig. Section 49 of the

Court and

Court Officers Act, 1995

provides

that from December 15, 1995 a

barrister or solicitor when

appearing in any court shall not be

required to wear a wig of the kind

heretofore worn or any other wig of

a ceremonial type. Judges still

retain their wigs.

Wigs had formed part of the formal

dress of judges and barristers since

about 1670. Bishops also wore wigs

on ceremonial occasions from around

the same time but discontinued the

practice during the reign of William

IV around 1832. The legal wigs of the

late 17th and early 18th centuries were

made of horsehair which constantly

needed frizzing and curling into place.

The forensic wig conveys a

sense of gravitas to a judge

and barrister. Many argue that

wearing wigs and robes

constitutes a useful and

effective disguise.

Apparently maintaining the wigs in

reasonable condition was an almost

daily task involving their being treated

with pomatum, a scented ointment,

according to wig makers

Ede

and

Ravenscroft

and then liberally

powdered. Apparently in the early

days of wigs, they were regarded at

best as unpleasant and heavy, while

the pomatum and powder shed from

the curls were both unsightly and

damaging to the wearer's clothes.

Humphrey Ravenscroft

of the noted

robe and wig makers in London

patented a wig made of white

horsehair on March 14, 1822. This

was the famous forensic wig whose

pattern and method of manufacturer is

used up to the present time.

The wig does convey a sense of

gravitas to a judge and to a barrister.

There is also the issue of impersonal

anonymity. In a recent survey,

(criminal) defendants were reported to

favour wigs. Many lawyers argued that

an appropriate tone was marked by

formal apparel including the wearing

of wigs and gowns. Many argued that

the wearing of wigs and robes

constituted a useful and effective

disguise. One judge requested that a

thought should be spared for those

judges at the sharper end of the

criminal justice system. He was glad

that when he did "ordinary things" (out

of court) like going to the cinema, a

football match and, he noted, "even

occasionally, God Forbid, the

supermarket", he did so without much

prospect of recognition. The judge. His

Honour Judge

David Hodson,

stated

that it also lessened the chances of a

crack over the head from a disgruntled

customer!

Judicial Appointments

Other provisions of a momentous

nature were enacted in the 1995 Act.

Many provisions can be described as

constituting lawyers' law - of little

interest to the layman - but of crucial

importance to the practitioner of law.

Part IV of the Act deals with the issue

of judicial appointments. The Judicial

Appointments Advisory Board will

advise on appointments relating to the

appointment of ordinary judges of the

Supreme Court, ordinary judges of the

High Court, ordinary judges of the

Circuit and judges of the District

Court other than the President of the

District Court. The Chief Justice, the

Presidents of the High Court, Circuit

Court and District Court will not be

subject to the "jurisdiction" of the

Judicial Appointments Advisory

Board, whose purpose is to identify

persons and inform the Government of

the suitability of those persons for

appointment to judicial office.

The Board consists of the Chief

Justice, Mr.

Justice Hamilton,

the

High Court President Mr.

Justice

Costello,

the President of the Circuit

Court, Mr.

Justice Spain,

the

President of the District Court, Judge

Peter Smithwick

and the Attorney

General, Mr.

Dermot Gleeson,

SC.

The Act also provides for the

appointment to the board of a

practising barrister and practising

solicitor. Mr.

James Nugent,

SC.

chairman of the Bar Council and Mr.

Thomas Shaw,

Solicitor and former

President of the Law Society have

been appointed to the Board. The

Minister for Justice appointed three

members to the Board on January 15,

1996: the chairwoman of the Irish

Association of Victim Support, Ms.

Barristers in traditional Court dress