Annex C. Case weight tables in Ireland
Preliminary case weights and position calculations – High Court | ||||||
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High Court – court business | Case category | Average incoming to judges, 2018/2019 – Courts Service's definition for "incoming" differs by category | Min. case weight (hours) | Min workload (hours) | Average mixed case weight (hours) | Average mixed workload (hours) |
All | Callover – total annual p. list judges, individual judges, provincial judges, vacation judges. Provided by High Court judges in December 2021. | 2 248 | 0.20 | 450 | 0.60 | 1 349 |
Civil
| Chancery (includes injunction applications, company law motions, specific performance/recession of contracts, administration of estates of deceases persons and trust actions) – reported as resolved by court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019; plus 22 from other civil p. year. | 248 | 10.10 | 2 505 | 87 | 21 613 |
| Chancery cases resolved "out of court". Time estimates based on sample case file reviews, by High Court President, February 2022. | 251 | 5.00 | 1 255 | 11 | 2 636 |
| Child abduction – reported as resolved by court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019. | 32 | 15 | 480 | 28 | 896 |
| Commercial Court – cases reported as resolved. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019 – shown as resolved in court (av. 72). | 72 | 19.80 | 1 426 | 198 | 14 249 |
| Commercial cases settled by motions to dismiss. | 3 | 18.80 | 56 | 33 | 99 |
| Commercial cases settled after entry. | 9 | 0.80 | 7 | 1 | 8 |
| Commercial cases settled after directions hearing and after hearing date set. | 26 | 16.50 | 421 | 30 | 752 |
| Commercial cases settled at hearing. | 16 | 19.50 | 312 | 33 | 528 |
| Common law non-jury – includes breach of contract (av. 36), negligence (except negligence resulting in personal injury) (av.33), debt recovery (av. 508), and Circuit Court appeals minus family law and personal insolvency appeals (370-59- 163 = 148) – reported as resolved by court. From annual report 2018 and 2019; plus 31 from other civil p. year. | 756 | 12.80 | 9 677 | 39 | 29 408 |
| Common law non-jury cases resolved ("settled") out of court – time calculated based on Court President data – breach of contract (69, 81=75), negligence (51, 124=87.5), none f. debt recovery as those are default appearances and discontinuance notices that do not require judicial time; plus 7 from other civil p. year. | 169 | 5.50 | 930 | 11 | 1 817 |
| Cases stated from District Court – average from Annual Report 2018 and 2019 (33, 39). | 36 | 12.80 | 461 | 39 | 1 400 |
| Corporate insolvency – (examinership (41 orders, av. 4 orders=10 cases), wind up company (44 cases), restrict directors (12 cases), disqualify directors (1 case) – reported by orders made (more than one order may be made in a case). From Annual Report 2018 and 2019; average orders made estimated by register and judges. | 67 | 7.70 | 516 | 28 | 1 899 |
| Windup company cases that settle, struck out, withdrawn; cases data from Annual Report 2018 and 2019; time from new Delphi estimates. | 22 | 0.50 | 11 | 1 | 13 |
| Defamation and assault – reported as resolved by court and out of court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019 (D21, a30) | 29 | 15.00 | 435 | 45 | 1 291 |
| European Arrest Warrant – resolved by court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019 | 140 | 9.50 | 1 330 | 17 | 2 408 |
| Family (excluding child abduction), family law appeals from Circuit Court (36,82=59), divorce (39,27=33) (minus 20 uncontested=13), judicial separation (34,47=40.5) (minus 24 uncontested=16.5), cohabitation (5,3=4) (minus 2 uncontested=2), nullity (of marriage) (1), maintenance (1,2), supervision and care orders (17,20=18.5), family law (other) (44, 44) and adoption (23, 22) (minus 14 uncontested=8) – reported as resolved by court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019; plus 11 from other civil p. year. | 238 | 22.00 | 5 236 | 57 | 13 447 |
| Uncontested divorce, judicial separation, cohabitation, adoption, surrogacy; 38% contested cases estimated by registrar. | 61 | 0.50 | 31 | 1 | 46 |
| Judicial review (except asylum) – including habeas corpus. Reported as resolved in court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019 (220+46, 337+41; plus 64 from other civil p. year). | 322 | 11.20 | 3 606 | 37 | 11 866 |
| Judicial review cases resolved "out of court" (88+1, 157+1) | 124 | 2.60 | 322 | 3 | 391 |
| Asylum cases – reported as applications resolved by court. From Annual Report 2018 and 2019 (130, 262) | 176 | 13.60 | 2 394 | 15 | 2 614 |
| Resolved "out of courts" (332, 135) | 228 | 1.70 | 388 | 2 | 479 |
| Medical negligence – special data from Courts Service in Dec 2021 and Jan 2022 for 2018 and 2019. Annual Report shows data as "cases" incoming to judges, which are orders made. New data provided by Courts Service are for new data on cases either heard and determined or settled during hearing (17, 25). | 21 | 81.30 | 1 707 | 202 | 4 245 |
| Medical negligence cases settled/strike out before hearing. New data provided by Courts Service 3 March 2022 (250, 239). Time estimates by HC President. | 244 | 2.00 | 488 | 2.5 | 610 |
| Medical negligence fatal settlement (52, 34). Time estimate based on Court President exercise. | 43 | 3.00 | 129 | 3 | 140 |
| Medical negligence "minor", i.e. child, settlement and minor refused (43+6, 25+2). Time estimate based on Court President exercise. | 37 | 3.00 | 111 | 3 | 120 |
| Medical negligence settled judgement (13, 21). | 17 | 2.00 | 34 | 3 | 43 |
| Personal injury (including Garda Compensation) –special data from Courts Service, Dec 2021 and Jan 2022 for 2018 and 2019. Reported as "cases" incoming to judges. "Cases" in the Annual Report are defined as number of orders made; new data are for cases either heard and determined or settled during hearing; revised by Courts Service 24 February 2022 (401, 295); plus 27 from other civil p. year. | 375 | 28.80 | 10 800 | 75 | 28 181 |
| Personal injury cases settled before hearing. New data provided by Courts Service 3 March 2022 (2 968, 3 234). Time estimates by HC judge. | 3 101 | 1.10 | 3 411 | 1.6 | 4 807 |
| Personal injury fatal settlement (26, 41). Time estimate based on Court President exercise. | 33 | 2.00 | 66 | 2 | 74 |
| Personal injury "minor", i.e. child, settlement and minor refused (142+7, 154+0). Time estimate based on Court President exercise. | 151 | 2.00 | 302 | 2 | 340 |
| Personal injury settled judgement (48, 41) | 102 | 1.00 | 102 | 2 | 153 |
| Personal insolvency – (including bankruptcy and personal insolvency appeals from Circuit Courts). From Annual report. Summonses 2018: 97; 2019: 88. Bankruptcy petitions: 32, 24. Special data provided by Courts Service Dec. 2021 and Jan. 2022. |
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| Bankruptcy summonses. | 93 | 1.50 | 139 | 5 | 486 |
| Bankruptcy petitions. | 29 | 38.50 | 1 117 | 47 | 1 363 |
| Personal insolvency and debt relief arrangements; 80% no judgement writing; Annual report 2019 and 2018 (10, 21). | 13 | 8.50 | 109 | 22 | 282 |
| Personal insolvency and debt relief arrangements; 20% with judgement writing; Annual report 2019and 2018 (10, 21). | 32 | 38.50 | 1 232 | 47 | 1 504 |
| Personal insolvency applications – self-adjudication. Annual report 2019 and 2018 (75, 73). | 74 | 0.20 | 15 | 0 | 19 |
| Personal insolvency appeals from Circuit Court (97, 229). Special data provided by Courts Service Dec. 2021 and Jan. 2022; 80% no judgement writing. | 169 | 8.00 | 1 354 | 22 | 3 680 |
| Personal insolvency appeals from Circuit Court (97, 229). Special data provided by Courts Service Dec. 2021 and Jan. 2022; 20% judgement writing. | 42 | 38.50 | 1 629 | 47 | 1 988 |
| Probate – No data published. Number of cases handled on probate list based on list register estimate from Dec. 2021. Average 14 matters listed, 3 adjourned 11 cases handled per week in one morning session, occasionally sitting into half of the afternoon. | 462 | 4.00 | 1 848 | 5 | 2 333 |
| More complex probate cases heard on other days – additional hearing time and judgement writing; av. 1.5 cases per week. Data based on estimate by probate judge, Feb. 2022. | 63 | 3.00 | 189 | 7 | 410 |
| Proceeds of crime – resolved by court. Annual Report 2018, 2019. | 16 | 10.90 | 169 | 18 | 278 |
| Property – possessions and other. Resolved by court. From Annual report 2018 and 2019 (169+35, 95+29); plus 14 from other civil p. year. | 178 | 2.10 | 374 | 10 | 1 700 |
| Property resolved out of court (12+6, 11+1). | 15 | 0.50 | 8 | 2 | 26 |
| Regulation of profession – resolved by court. From Annual report 2018 and 2019 (159); plus 3 from other civil p. year. | 164 | 1.40 | 230 | 3 | 508 |
| Wards of Court – reported as declaration orders and applications dealt with by way of undertakings. | 382 | 1.40 | 535 | 3 | 1 222 |
| Wardship orders dismissed, discharged, temporary protective confinements, etc. Monday list. Data based on High Court judge estimate cases listed provided 1 March 2022. | 1 416 | 0.20 | 283 | 0.4 | 496 |
| Wardship orders dismissed, discharged, temporary protective confinements, etc. Tue-Fri. lists. Data based on High Court judge estimate cases listed provided 1 March 2022. | 1 416 | 1.00 | 1 416 | 2 | 2 124 |
| Other civil: admiralty cases, simple – provided by Courts Service 8 March 2022. | 4 | 1.00 | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Other civil: admiralty cases, complex – provided by Courts Service 8 March 2022. | 1 | 14.00 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
| Other civil: freedom of Information appeals – provided by Courts Service March 8, 2022. | 2 | 45.50 | 91 | 46 | 91 |
| Other civil: arbitration – provided by Courts Service 8 March 2022. | 1 | 61.50 | 62 | 62 | 62 |
| Other civil: wrongful imprisonment cases – provided by Courts Service 8 March 2022. | 1 | 84.50 | 85 | 146 | 146 |
Criminal
| Bail – resolved by court. From Annual report 2018 and 2019. | 1 353 | 0.80 | 1 082 | 3 | 4 059 |
| Central Criminal Court – special data from CCTS system, provided by Courts Service, Dec 2021. 2018, 2019: 140, 141 cases. | 143 |
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| Excluding accused deceased, Nolle prosequi and TIC/non-conviction only. | 21 |
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| Guilty plea, lesser charge guilty plea. | 52 | 5.50 | 286 | 8 | 403 |
| Not guilty by direction of judge. | 6 | 24.50 | 135 | 74 | 409 |
| Guilty by jury, no result, not guilty by jury, not guilty reason of insanity, unfit to plea. | 65 | 29.30 | 1 890 | 85 | 5 470 |
| Special Criminal Court – special data from CCTS system, provided by Courts Service, Dec 2021. 2019: 39 cases both years. | 39 |
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| Excluding nolle prosequi. TIC/Non conviction. | 5 |
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| Guilty plea. | 19 | 19.17 | 364 | 52 | 990 |
| Guilty, non-guilty, and acquitted. | 15 | 108.00 | 1 620 | 264 | 3 960 |
NCR | Non-case related work, p. week, all judges | 1 932 | 11.00 | 21 252 | 16 | 30 912 |
Total workload (hours) |
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| 86 925 |
| 212 859 | |
Total workload-based positions | 48 | 118 |
Preliminary case weights and position calculations – District Court | |||||
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District Court – court business | Case category | Average incoming to judges, 2018/2019 – definitions differ by category | Min. case weight (hours) | Min. workload (hours) | Av. mix workload (hours) |
Civil | Enforcement of judgements – reported as incoming and orders issued. Numbers in AR are enforcement (summons to attend lodged in office) (2019 and 2018). System files show data for no. cases and NOT/Substantive Motion Disposed of and are significantly lower (see below). | 2 140 | 0.19 | 407 | 738 |
General civil – data from Courts Service file Annual Report 2019 District Court Civil with averages 270 320; reported as civil cases disposed by court. This includes appeals to DC, ejectment, other civil/ordinary, personal injury and personal injury minor. | 5 505 | 1.70 | 9 359 | 17 203 | |
Licensing – from Courts Service data file: Annual Report 2019\DC & CC Licensing Stats 2019\2019 CSOL Stats\2019 Annual Licensing Stats. | 42 144 | 0.03 | 1 264 | 4 847 | |
Small claims (SC) – from Courts Service data file Annual report/DC Small Claims 2019 06 05 2020; all Irish and EU, reported by cases received, disposed of out of court, and adjudicated by court. Most cases disposed out of court didn’t qualify for SC procedures. | 606 | 0.70 | 424 | 576 | |
Criminal | General criminal – Annual report provides resolved by offences only, includes juvenile. | 104 330 |
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General criminal offenders dealt with 2019 – special report from Court Service – CCTC system, 16 December 2021; % resolved estimates by judges and registrars 21 Dec. 2021. 2018 – 78 418; 2019 – 50 506. | 64 462 |
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Resolved by plea – 75%. | 48 347 | 0.15 | 7 252 | 10 878 | |
Requires full hearing – 25%. | 16 116 | 0.70 | 11 281 | 19 339 | |
Juvenile Children Court – Annual report provides resolved by offences only. | 4 114 | 1.05 |
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Juvenile delinquents dealt with 2019, including Juv. Road traffic accidents –special report from Court Service – CCTC system, 16 December 2021. Estimates by judges (19 Jan. 2021 and registrars 21 Dec. 2021); 2018 – 1 118; 2019 – 1 255. | 1 218 |
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Resolved by plea – 75%. | 913 | 0.20 | 183 | 183 | |
Requires full hearing – 25%. | 228 | 1.05 | 240 | 314 | |
Road traffic – Annual Report only provides number of offences dealt with. | 134 060 | 0.60 |
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Defendants dealt with 2019 – special report from Court Service – CCTC system, 16 December 2021, estimates by judges (22 Jan. 2022, and registrars 21 Dec. 2021), adult road traffic accidents only. 2018 – 78 418; 2019 – 79 709. | 79 064 |
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Resolved by plea – 80%. | 63 251 | 0.10 | 6 325 | 18 975 | |
Requires full hearing – 20%. | 15 813 | 0.60 | 9 488 | 11 069 | |
Family
| Childcare – reported in AR are only incoming and resolved applications for orders (including case process orders, i.e. adjournment, direction, etc.). Used Courts Service special file, annual total, DC Family Law 2019 08 05 2020, and registrar estimates sent by CS on 12/21. Compared with Tusla data – av. order types issued 2019-2021. | 9 398 | 2.00 |
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| Divided by av. number of applications per case estimated by registrars at 10. | 940 | 2.00 | 1 880 | 3 289 |
| General family law – From Courts Service special files. Resolved by court. Includes maintenance, domestic violence, guardianship and other, which is mainly application for service and sect. 32. | 46 644 | 0.70 |
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Divided by av. number of applications per case estimated by registrars at av. 2.8. | 16 659 | 2.00 | 33 317 | 33 317 | |
NCR | Non-case related work, p. day all judges | 42 | 1 280.00 | 53 760 | 69 216 |
Total workload (hours) |
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| 135 178 | 180 677 | |
Total workload-based positions | 75 | 100 |
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