Courts, Civil Law, Criminal Law and Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2024
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PART 6 Amendment of Judicial Council Act 2019 | ||
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Amendment of Judicial Council Act 2019 | ||
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14. The Judicial Council Act 2019 is amended— | ||
(a) in section 2, by the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “personal injuries guidelines”: | ||
“ ‘personal injuries guidelines’ shall, subject to section 89A, have the meaning assigned to it by section 90(1);”, | ||
(b) in section 7— | ||
(i) in subsection (2), by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (g): | ||
“(ga) subject to subsection (2A), adopt any amendments to personal injuries guidelines prepared and submitted to the Board under section 18(2)(b) with the modifications (if any) made by the Board under section 11(1)(d), as soon as practicable after such submission, and publish the amendments in such manner as it considers appropriate as soon as practicable following such adoption,”, | ||
(ii) by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (2): | ||
“(2A) Amendments to personal injuries guidelines may be adopted by the Council under subsection (2)(ga) only where— | ||
(a) a draft of the amendments has first been laid before each House of the Oireachtas, and | ||
(b) a resolution approving the draft of the amendments has been passed by each such House. | ||
(2B) For the purposes of subsection (2A), the Council shall submit a draft of the amendments it proposes to adopt to the Minister and the Minister shall cause a draft of the amendments to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as practicable after the receipt thereof.”, | ||
and | ||
(iii) in subsection (5), by the substitution of “Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the functions of the Council referred to in paragraphs (a) to (d) and paragraphs (ga) and (h) of subsection (2), and in subsections (2A) and (2B), other than in so far as the functions referred to in paragraphs (d), (ga) and (h)” for “Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the functions referred to in paragraphs (a) to (d) and paragraphs (g) and (h) of subsection (2), other than in so far as the functions referred to in paragraphs (d), (g) and (h)”, | ||
(c) in section 18(5)(a), by the substitution of “within 3 years of the adoption by the Council of the guidelines first adopted by it” for “within 3 years of the first guidelines being adopted by the Council”, | ||
(d) by the insertion of the following section after section 32: | ||
“Superannuation | ||
32A. (1) The Board shall, as soon as practicable after the coming into operation of section 14 (d) of the Courts, Civil Law, Criminal Law and Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2024— | ||
(a) prepare and submit to the Minister, and | ||
(b) with the approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, | ||
make a scheme for the granting of superannuation benefits to or in respect of any person appointed to be the Secretary. | ||
(2) A scheme made under this section shall fix the time and conditions of retirement for a person to or in respect of whom superannuation benefits are payable under the scheme. | ||
(3) A scheme made under this section shall be carried out by the Board in accordance with its terms. | ||
(4) No superannuation benefit shall be granted by the Board to or in respect of a person to or in respect of whom superannuation benefits are payable under a scheme made under this section nor shall any other arrangement be entered into for the provision of any superannuation benefit to such person on ceasing to hold office, otherwise than in accordance with— | ||
(a) a scheme or schemes made under this section, or | ||
(b) an arrangement approved by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform. | ||
(5) Every scheme made under this section shall make provision for appeals. | ||
(6) (a) Every scheme made under this section may be amended or revoked by a subsequent scheme made under this section. | ||
(b) Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (1) shall, with all necessary modifications, apply to the making of a subsequent scheme referred in paragraph (a). | ||
(7) The Minister shall cause a scheme made under this section to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is approved under this section and, if a resolution annulling the scheme is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the scheme is laid before it, the scheme shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder. | ||
(8) In this section— | ||
‘superannuation benefit’ means a pension, gratuity or other allowance payable on resignation, retirement or death; | ||
‘scheme made under this section’ means a scheme made by the Board in accordance with subsection (1) and includes a subsequent scheme, referred to in subsection (6), made by the Board.”, | ||
(e) by the insertion of the following section after section 89: | ||
“Amendments to personal injuries guidelines | ||
89A. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the personal injuries guidelines adopted by the Council on 6 March 2021 (in this section referred to as the ‘guidelines’) that, for the avoidance of doubt, have continued in force since 24 April 2021 (being the date on which section 99 came into operation), shall, on and after the coming into operation of this section, continue in force subject to any amendments to those guidelines that the Council adopts under section 7(2)(ga). | ||
(2) The reference in section 18(5) to the guidelines first adopted by the Council shall be construed as a reference to the guidelines and, accordingly— | ||
(a) the Board shall, in accordance with section 11(1)(d), review any draft amendments to the guidelines that have been prepared and submitted by the Personal Injuries Guidelines Committee to the Board under section 18(2)(b) with the review of the guidelines completed by that Committee before the coming into operation of this section, and | ||
(b) section 7(2)(ga) shall apply to the adoption by the Council of any such amendments to the guidelines. | ||
(3) The reference in section 90(1) to the personal injuries guidelines adopted by the Council shall be construed as a reference to the guidelines.”, | ||
and | ||
(f) in section 100(1)— | ||
(i) by the substitution of “section 7(2)(ga)” for “section 7(2)(g)(ii)”, and | ||
(ii) by the substitution of “those amendments to the guidelines” for “the guidelines as amended” in each place it occurs. |