Control of Exports Act 2023
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Chapter 2 Adjudicators | ||
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Appointment of adjudicators | ||
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39. (1) The Minister— | ||
(a) may, in accordance with this section, appoint such and so many persons (in this Act referred to as “adjudicators”) to carry out the functions assigned to them by or under this Act, and | ||
(b) shall form a panel of persons who have been appointed as adjudicators. | ||
(2) The Minister shall not appoint a person to be an adjudicator unless— | ||
(a) the person is a practising solicitor or barrister, within the meaning of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 , or a former judge of the Circuit Court, High Court, Court of Appeal or Supreme Court, | ||
(b) the Minister is satisfied that the person has the requisite knowledge or experience of matters relevant to the functions of an adjudicator, and | ||
(c) the Minister is satisfied that it is appropriate for the person, having regard to the security or public order of the State, to carry out the functions of an adjudicator, including by reference to such clearance, verification or background checks as may be prescribed. | ||
(3) A person— | ||
(a) to whom the circumstances specified in one or more of paragraphs (d) to (m) of subsection (8) applies, or | ||
(b) who stands appointed under section 37 , | ||
shall not be appointed as an adjudicator. | ||
(4) The Minister, in so far as practicable and having regard to the knowledge or experience referred to in subsection (2)(b), shall ensure an appropriate gender balance when appointing persons to the panel of adjudicators. | ||
(5) Subject to this Act, an adjudicator’s functions under this Act shall be performed independently. | ||
(6) An adjudicator— | ||
(a) shall stand appointed for such period as the Minister may specify, | ||
(b) shall be paid such fees and expenses as the Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, determine, and | ||
(c) shall be appointed subject to such terms and conditions as the Minister may specify. | ||
(7) An adjudicator may at any time give notice to the Minister that he or she is resigning as an adjudicator. | ||
(8) The appointment of an adjudicator under this section shall cease upon— | ||
(a) the expiry of a period specified by the Minister under subsection (6)(a), | ||
(b) the revocation by the Government of the appointment under section 40 , | ||
(c) the resignation of the adjudicator, | ||
(d) the conviction of the adjudicator on indictment of an offence, | ||
(e) the conviction of the adjudicator of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty, | ||
(f) the making of a declaration against the adjudicator under section 819 of the Companies Act 2014 or the deeming of the adjudicator to be subject to such a declaration by virtue of Chapter 5 of Part 14 of that Act, | ||
(g) the adjudicator being subject to, or being deemed to be subject to, a disqualification order within the meaning of Chapter 4 of Part 14 of the Companies Act 2014 whether by virtue of that Chapter or of any other provision of that Act, | ||
(h) the adjudicator being nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, | ||
(i) the adjudicator being elected as a member of either House of the Oireachtas or to be a member of the European Parliament, | ||
(j) the adjudicator being regarded pursuant to Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act 1997 as having been elected to be a member of the European Parliament, | ||
(k) the adjudicator being elected or co-opted as a member of a local authority, | ||
(l) the adjudicator’s name being removed, where the adjudicator is a practising barrister, from the roll of practising barristers (which shall be construed in accordance with section 2 (1) of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 ), or | ||
(m) the adjudicator’s name being struck off, where the adjudicator is a practising solicitor, the roll of solicitors (which shall be construed in accordance with section 9 of the Solicitors Act 1954 ). | ||
(9) A person who is for the time being— | ||
(a) entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit therein, or | ||
(b) a member of the European Parliament, | ||
shall, while the person is so entitled or is such a member, as the case may be, be disqualified for office as an adjudicator. | ||
(10) Where an adjudicator dies, resigns, ceases to be qualified for office, ceases to hold office or is removed from office, the Minister may appoint, in the same manner as the adjudicator who occasioned the casual vacancy was appointed, a person to be an adjudicator to fill the casual vacancy so occasioned. | ||
(11) A person appointed to be an adjudicator pursuant to subsection (10) shall hold office for that period of the term of office of the adjudicator who occasioned the casual vacancy concerned that remains unexpired at the date of the appointment and shall be eligible for reappointment as an adjudicator on the expiry of the said period. | ||
(12) The Civil Service Regulation Acts 1956 to 2005 shall not apply to an adjudicator. |