Circuit Court - Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

In the Republic of Ireland the Circuit Court is part of the Courts of First Instance, senior to the District Court but junior to the High Court (Ireland). It was first established as the Circuit Court of Justice under the Courts of Justice Act 1924 and replaced the County Court on the civil side, and Quarter Sessions and Recorder's Courts on the criminal side, as well as some of the jurisdiction of the assizes. The criminal jurisdiction of the court extends to all indictable offences other than murder, rape, and treason, and these are heard on front of a judge and jury . The civil jurisdiction of the court is limited to damages of €38,092.14 and actions involving land with a ratable value of less than €254.95 (Land value worth approx. €3 million). These are heard by a judge sitting alone. It also has jurisdiction to hear appeals from the District Court. Appeals from the Court lie to the High Court on the civil side and the Court of Criminal Appeal on the criminal side.

The Circuit Court is so called because of the circuits on which its judges travel, namely Dublin, Cork, Northern, Western, Eastern, South Western, South Eastern, and Midland, each of which are composed of a number of counties. The court consist of a President and thirty-seven judges. Although there is strictly speaking just one Circuit Court, a sitting of the Circuit Court in any particular location is referred to as name of town Circuit Court, e.g. Trim Circuit Court.

The High Court also sits "on circuit" twice yearly, though this is called the High Court on Circuit rather than a circuit court. In this case on circuit means sitting in a location other than Dublin.