The Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeal will sit in September this year in an effort to ease pressure on the system.
Chief Justice Mrs Susan Denham and President of the High Court Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns have made the arrangement in an attempt to reduce waiting times, which are currently running at up to four years at the Supreme Court, and 15 months at the Court of Criminal Appeal.
The move follows an announcement by Minister for Justice Alan Shatter earlier this month that the number of judges at the Supreme Court will be increased from 8 to 10 under a plan to cut the long backlog of cases.
The Supreme Court received 600 new appeals last year, a 20 per cent increase on 2011. Mrs Justice Denham announced earlier this year that the court could not accept any new priority cases, as there were already 70 waiting to be heard.
The Government intends to hold a referendum in September to create a Court of Civil Appeal, but even if it is approved it could take two years to set up.
Mrs Justice Denham said the September sittings would be an “interim measure to lessen delays” before the Court of Civil Appeal is introduced.
The new court would “provide permanent and sensible relief of the current logjam”, she added.
Welcoming the announcement today, Mr Shatter said the move would “alleviate the delays and help to ensure that citizens’ right of access to justice is upheld”.
