Cost of litigation set to drop with changes to District and Circuit Courts
The cost of litigation and legal services looks likely to plummet with the introduction of legislation increasing the maximum awards that can be made by the District and Circuit Courts.
The Courts and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013, which came into force at the beginning of this year, has made significant changes to the monetary jurisdictions of the District and Circuit Courts with the hopeful impact of driving down the cost of legal services.
From January of this year the jurisdiction of the District Court will have increased from the former sum of €6,384 to a new figure of €15,000 being the maximum award that the District can make in any proceedings.
The Circuit Court will see an increase from the former sum of €38,092 to €75,000 except in personal injury actions, where the new cap on damages will be €60,000.
The consequences of each of these changes will mean that a substantial number of actions that would have been commenced in the High Court will now be conducted in the Circuit Court. As a result parties will not be burdened with the cost of High Court proceedings.
The same follows cases that may now be commenced in the District Court rather than having to be litigated in the Circuit Court.
Choosing the right court to commence a case is a paramount consideration to be taken by any potential litigant as choosing the wrong court can limit an award of damages or alternatively lead to a plaintiff being penalised by costs.
Prior to the 2013 Act’s commencement the monetary jurisdiction of each of these courts had remained unchanged since 1991. The changes bring the jurisdiction of each court in line with inflation, and together with the establishment of the Court of Appeal should ameliorate the burden of the Supreme Court in considering appeals.
Samantha Geraghty– Partner
Samantha has specialist knowledge and gives advice in many areas of commercial law. “We have solid expertise in litigation and dispute resolution. Our aim is to get an optimal solution between commercial targets and legal options.”
DISCLAIMER
This information is for guidance purposes only. It does not constitute legal or professional advice. Professional or legal advice should be obtained before taking or refraining from any action as a result of the contents of this publication. No liability is accepted by P. O’Connor & Son Solicitors for any action taken in reliance on the information contained herein. Any and all information is subject to change.