Offences Against the State Act 1939

Constitution of Special Criminal Courts.

39

39.—(1) Every Special Criminal Court established under this Part of this Act shall consist of such uneven number (not being less than three) of members as the Government shall from time to time determine, and different numbers of members may be so fixed in respect of different Special Criminal Courts.

(2) Each member of a Special Criminal Court shall be appointed, and be removable at will, by the Government.

(3) No person shall be appointed to be a member of a Special Criminal Court unless he is a judge of the High Court or the Circuit Court, or a justice of the District Court, or a barrister of not less than seven years standing, or a solicitor of not less than seven years standing, or an officer of the Defence Forces not below the rank of commandant.

(4) The Minister for Finance may pay to every member of a Special Criminal Court such (if any) remuneration and allowancesas the said Minister may think proper, and different rates of remuneration and allowances may be so paid to different members of any such Court, or to the members of different such Courts.

F32[(5) The Courts Service may appoint from among the staff of the Courts Service such registrars for the purposes of any Special Criminal Court as it thinks proper, and every such registrar shall hold his or her office on such terms and conditions (including terms and conditions relating to remuneration) as are determined by the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.]

Annotations

Amendments:

F32

Substituted (31.07.2023) by Courts and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2023 (18/2023), s. 109, S.I. No. 389 of 2023.

Modifications (not altering text):

C25

Registrar appointed under this section deemed to be constituent court office (4.12.2009) by Courts and Court Officers Act 2009 (36/2009), s. 17(2), S.I. No. 477 of 2009.

Special Criminal Court.

17.— (1) Notwithstanding any other enactment, the Government may, by order, provide that specified business of a Special Criminal Court, other than business that is required to be transacted by or before a judge or judges of such a Court, shall be transacted in a combined court office.

(2) A registrar appointed for the purposes of a Special Criminal Court under section 39 of the Act of 1939, or any person acting under the direction of such a registrar, in the transaction of the business that is the subject of an order under subsection (1), is deemed to be a constituent court office for the purposes of this Part.

Editorial Notes:

E23

Previous affecting provision: reference to Courts of Justice Act 1924, s. 30 construed (29.09.1961) by Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 (39/1961), s. 12(3), S.I. No. 217 of 1961; s. 12 repealed (31.08.2014) by Court of Appeal Act 2014 (18/2014), s. 73 and sch. 1 item 5, S.I. No. 259 of 2018.