q[.An tSeirbhis Chiirteonno

Courts Seryice

Cllr. Michael MerriganDun Laoghaire Rathdown County CouncilCounty HallMarine RoadDun LaoghaireCo Dublin

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13th June 2014

Re: Proposed closure of Dun Laoghaire Courthouse

Dear Counsellor,

Thank you for your letter dated the 72th of June 2014 inrelation to the proposedclosure of Dun Laoghaire Courthouse.

Please be assured that your submission will be taken into account in consideration ofthis matter.

Yours sincerely

Brend6n 6 Riain, Priomh Fheidhmeannach, AN tSftgH[S CUIRTEANNA, Aras an Fhionn Uisce,15124 sr6id an Fhionn Uisce Thuaidh, Margadh na Feirme, Baile Atha Cliath 7.

BrendanRyan,ChiefExecutiveOfficer,COURTSSERVICE,PhoenixHouse, l5/24PhoenixStreetNor-th,Smithfield,DublinT.Teileafon/Telephone: 0l 888 6426 Facsuimhir/Fax:01 873 5242 Liithredn Gr6asiinlWebsite: http://www.courts.ie

Brendan RyanChief Executive Officer

Re:

CllT. MICHAEL MERRIGANI

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Independent * Diln Laoghaire LEA

Dfin Laoghaire Rathdown County CouncilCounty Hall, Marine Road, Drin Laoghaire, Co. Dublin

Tel:+353 (0) 86 075 6026 E-mail: mrqerrigan@cllr.dlrcoco.ie

l2b June2014

Chief Executive,Courts Service,Phoenix House,15124 Phoenix Street North,Smithfield,Dublin 7

c.c. Cllr. Marie Baker, Cathaoirleach, Drin Laoghaire Rathdown County Corurcil.

A Chara,

The proposed closure of the Drin Laoghaire Court House and the relocation of its services toDublin City has a number of very serious consequences for the administration ofjustice in thisarea and it would certainly impact very negatively on the social and economic fabric of thetown of Dirn Laoghaire.

Therefore, it is my intention to seek cross-party support at Dirn Laoghaire Rathdown CountyCouncil to request the intervention of the Minister for Justice and Equality in this matter for,inasmuch as it is government policy and indeed, a requirement of the Haddinglon RoadAgreement, that the Courts Service, in common with other public sector organisations, mustconsider efficiencies, reorganisations, restructuring and prioritisation before seekingadditionaUreplacement resources to address current and future challenges, this cannot be at theexpense of the delivery of vital local services underpinning the administration ofjustice in ourRepublic.

In the interim, I would shongly urge the Courts Service to take the following points intoconsideration in its assessment of the proposal to close Dirn Laoghaire Court House.

1. The business community needs and deserves the support of a court service at local level.

In addition, the business community and local residents should have access to a court

service at local level for the many and varied experiences of daily life which quite often

bring them before the courts in different capacities.

Dun Laoghaire Court provides its services and to an area extending fromLoughlinstown Hospital in the south to Sandyford and Dundrum in the west, through

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to Merrion Gates in the north, a population exceeding that of City of Limerick.

Drin Laoghaire is also the county capital of the County of Drin Laoghaire Rathdown

where the local authority deals with a multiplicity of local issues involving the local

community and it has a significant volume of business before Drin Laoghaire Court

which will be ongoing and is ever increasing. The local community is directly involved

in those proceedings and a local court is best placed to serye those individuals and the

decision making requires, in the interests ofjustice and insight, a local presence and

knowledge.

Juveniles charged with criminal offences should be dealt with and must be dealt withat local level. It is detrimental to their vulnerable position that they should be brought

before the Juvenile Court in Smithfield. Many of these juveniles are new to the court

system. It is extremely damaging that they should be in a position where they can

engage with many others in Dublin City where their wlnerability can and will be

exploited.

Those people encountering drug related difficulties should not be centralised into a city

court system any more than juveniles. Rehabilitation and restorative justice become

more difficult and, quite frequently, meaningless if such centralisation were to occur by

the closing of Drin Laoghaire Court. Restorative justice is a very important and new

development which is based upon the principle of community involvement. The whole

concept requires a court system at local level to be effective.

At a community interaction level, the Courts Service, Local Probation Service and An

Garda Sioch6na very successfully supported many 'Youth Diversionary Projects' inDrin Laoghaire over the past fifteen years. One such project in particular, DfnLaoghaire Town Football Club, was instrumental in successfully addressing many

serious problems of antisocial behaviour; eliminating social exclusion and thus

breaking generational patterns of offending. Many young males who would have

otherwise ended up incarcerated, tumed instead to training and education and,

eventually, moved on to employment. This excellent local collaboration between the

community and the state agencies above, very significantly, at a time when hundreds

of young male asylum seekers were resident in town of Drin Laoghaire, ensured that no

racially motivated incidents occurred involving any of the circa 140 young males

associated with Dfn Laoghaire Town Football Club. The removal of the Court Services

and possibly, the Local Probation Services, from Drin Laoghaire will have very serious

and hugely negative impacts on the much valued and essential work of the Community

Gardai and the local community groups in the area.

There is a loss in personnel, productivity and commercial terms, inasmuch as,

witnesses, members of the business community, experts, private residents and litigants

would be forced to commute to and be available for indefinite periods of time in the

city centre for court purposes. This includes such court business as civil litigation, debt

recovery, local authority business and road traffrc and parking prosecutions.

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8. The value of local knowledge cannot be overstated in terms of the effectiveness of the

justice system. This local knowledge is gained through the transaction of court business

at local level and ensures that the community is best served. The removal of the centre

whereby this local knowledge is gained at every level is a massive disservice to the

community quite apart from the inconveniences already set out above. It also serves as

a clear indication that Drin Laoghaire Town Centre and its surrounding arca are to be

deliberately disadvantaged and its status further diminished at a time when it isstruggling for survival.

g. With the slow return to prosperity already beginning in this country the need for a court

service in an area as big as Dun Laoghaire is not only justified but absolutely essential.

These services will increase in value to the community as economic activity returns,

employment increases and a healthy commercial sentiment is evident in local stores,

restaurants, pubs and other establishments. This is especially important for a town like

Drin Laoghaire which has suffered disproportionally during the recession with high

levels of unemployment, business closures and currently struggling to get back on its

feet.

10. Drin Laoghaire Court is not a temporary court of convenience sitting once or twice a

month or a couple of days a week. It has a full 5 day schedule for the transaction ofcourt business of significance and variety. There has been a court in Dtn Laoghaire

since 1860, originally a Magistrates Court. From the foundation of the State the court

presence continued and for almost 50 years it has been transacting business in the local

community on a 5 day week basis.

I 1. The impact on An Garda Siochdna must not be underestimated. Centralising the District

Court Services in town will mean that the Gardai appearing in Court will not be in our

local area and will be taken off the beat for longer periods. This has the potential to

further weaken the Garda presence in areas that recently lost their Garda Stations like

Dalkey and Kill O' The Grange. The public demand and deserve a visible policing

service.

12. Similarly there will be a detrimental effect on the probation services in our area not to

mention the training and rehabilitation services which will all suffer with staff off site

for longer periods. Please see no. 6 above.

13.Theiurisdiction of the District court in civil matters has been increased to €15,000

which will increase the number of cases before the lower court. Local businesses and

individuals will be seriously discommoded by having to go to one of several civil courts

in the city centre and of course suffer long delays in having their cases heard.

14. The Family District Court has recently been centralised in Dolphin House. The

experience has been very poor with citizens having long delays, no privacy, totally

inadequate seating and not knowing which court they will be heard in until a public

address announcement.

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15. As a matter of public policy, the centralisation of the administration ofjustice in the

City of Dubtin, and the closing down of regional court houses in towns like Dun

Laoghaire, removes an essential pillar of our democracy from local communities in a

manner that is hardly consistent with Article 34.1 of Bunreacht na hilireann. Tlte

principle that the administation ofjustice shall be in public naturally means that such

should be accessible and visible, as far as is practicable, to local communities in

regional court houses.

16. The unsustainable levels of overcrowding at the Garda Station on Corrig Avenue in

Drin Laoghaire caused by the relocation of stafffrom the now closed stations at Dalkey

and Kill O' The Crrange shoutd be addressed by the reopening of, at least, the Dalkey

Garda Station to meet the needs of the local communities in the Dalkey I Killiney /Glenageary areas. The closure of the Court House in Dtn Laoghaire and the possible

reuse of the building to address the overcrowding at the Garda Station is not in the

interests of the local communities in Din Laoghaire and Dalkey. Public safety and the

quality of the policing service in the area should not be firther comp'romised in the

interests of thg pursuit of dubious efficiencies in the Courts Service.

Whilst thanking you for placing this matter before the Sub-Committee of the Courts Service

which is charged with assessing each of the submissions, should further information or

clarification oo any of the above points be rcquired ptease do not hesitate to contact me at tlre

telephone number or e-mail address provided above.

Please acknowledge recerp of this submission.

Mise le meas,

Cltr. MICHAEL MERRIGAFi, MA, FGSIIndependent, Dfin Laoghaire LEADfin Laoghaire Rathdown County Council

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to gratefully acknowledge receipt of the very helpful and detailedoperational arguments prepared and presented by Mr. Justin McKenna ofPartners at Law, Solicitors, who wrote to each County Councillor on June 5tt'2014outlining the impact that the proposed closure of Dirn Laoghaire Court Housewould have on the administration ofjustice and ancillary services in this area.

Mr. McKenna urged all County Councillors to make submissions on this matterto the Courts Service.

Cllr. Michael Merrigan

23 June 24ru