1. The Commercial List of the High Court will commence operation with effect from the 12th day of January 2004
2. The transfer of proceedings to the High Court Commercial List, and the conduct of proceedings once transferred to the List, are regulated by new rules of court, viz. Order 63A of the Rules of the Superior Courts [S.I. No. 2 of 2004], which came into effect on the 12th day of January 2004. A copy of Order 63 A may be downloaded from the Courts service web site at www.courts.ie in the section "Press releases and Announcements".
3. Mr. Justice Peter Kelly has been designated as the judge having charge of the High Court Commercial List, and will carry out the functions of Judge of the High Court Commercial List conferred by Order 63 A. Mr. Justice Kelly and Ms Justice Mary Finlay Geoghegan will hear and determine proceedings, or any application in relation to proceedings, entered in the High Court Commercial List.
4. Ms. Paula Healy has been designated as the High Court Commercial List Registrar, and will carry out the functions of Registrar conferred by Order 63 A. The High Court Commercial List Registrar's office is located on the first floor, 12-13 Bow Street, Dublin 7. The office will be open between the hours of 10.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. (Telephone no. 087 2925771 This Practice Direction will be revised when a land line contact number is available; e-mail address: commercialcourt@courts.ie)
5. The High Court Commercial List will be taken and proceedings transferred to it tried in the courtroom located on the first floor, 12-13 Bow Street, Dublin 7. Additional courtrooms will be designated for proceedings transferred to the High Court Commercial List as the need arises. The High Court Commercial List will be taken on Friday of each week in Term.
6. Attention is drawn to rule 4 of Order 63 A, which provides that: "(1) Upon application made in accordance with sub rule 2 of this rule, commercial proceedings may be entered in the High Court Commercial List by order of the Judge of the High Court Commercial List.
(2) A party to commercial proceedings may, at any time prior to: (a) the close of pleadings, in the case of plenary proceedings, or
(b) completion of the filing of affidavits, in the case of summary proceedings or any other proceedings to be heard on affidavit without pleadings,
by motion on notice to the other party or parties to those proceedings, apply to the Judge of the High Court Commercial List for an order entering the proceedings in the High Court Commercial List. The notice of motion shall have appended thereto a certificate of the solicitor for the applicant to the effect that the proceedings are appropriate to be treated as commercial proceedings within the meaning of rule 1 of this Order, and setting out such facts relating to the proceedings as shall demonstrate this.
(3) At the hearing of the motion referred to in sub rule 2 of this rule, the applicant shall produce the certificate appended to the notice of motion, or a certified copy or certified copies thereof,
(4) Upon the hearing of the motion referred to in sub rule 2 of this rule, the Judge of the High Court Commercial List may direct that the proceedings be entered in the High Court Commercial List, in which event all further motions or applications in respect of such proceedings shall be made to a Judge.
(5) Where the Judge of the High Court Commercial List directs that proceedings be entered in the High Court Commercial List in accordance with this rule, he shall: (a) fix a date for the initial directions hearing; or
(b) treat the hearing of the motion as the initial directions hearing."
7. The categories of proceedings falling within the definition of "commercial proceedings" as referred to in rule 4(1) of Order 63 A aforementioned are set out in rule 1 of Order 63A and are listed in the Schedule to this Practice Direction.
8. Applications for transfer to the High Court Commercial List may be made in respect of proceedings instituted on or after the 12th day of January 2004 and falling within the categories of proceedings referred to at paragraph 7 of this Practice Direction.
9. Parties to proceedings in the High Court wishing to lodge applications for entry in the List, or relating to proceedings already entered in the List, should obtain a return date from the High Court Commercial List Registrar before presenting the application for filing in the Central Office. Certified copies of the notice of motion, grounding affidavit and any other documents required to accompany those papers, or of any other document filed in the Central Office relating to such applications, shall be lodged with the High Court Commercial List Registrar by the party filing the same immediately after the application or document has been filed in the Central Office.
10. Attention is drawn in particular to the following provisions of Order 63 A concerning case management and preparation for trial: (a) Rule 14(9) requires, in the case of proceedings ordered to be subject to case management, that the plaintiff, applicant or other party prosecuting the proceedings shall, in consultation with the other party or parties, prepare a case booklet, containing the documentation prescribed by rule 14(10) of Order 63 A, to be lodged with the Registrar and served on the other party or parties not later than four clear days prior to the first date fixed for the case management conference.
(b) Rule 21(1) requires, in the case of proceedings entered in the List which are proceeding to trial, that the plaintiff, applicant or other party prosecuting the proceedings shall, unless the Judge chairing the pre-trial conference otherwise directs, prepare in consultation with the other party or parties and lodge with the Registrar, not less than four clear days prior to the date fixed for the trial a trial booklet and a case summary.
(c) Rule 21(2)(a) provides that the parties may be requested by the judge chairing the pre-trial conference to consult with each other with a view to agreeing, where possible, upon a list of the documents and, as appropriate, any extracts from documents intended to be relied upon at the trial.
11. A party wishing to prepare and maintain a case booklet in electronic form should inform the judge having charge of the High Court Commercial List of this on the hearing of the application for an order transferring the proceedings to the High Court Commercial List.
12. The courtroom at the Bow Street premises will be equipped to facilitate digital audio recording facilities and, where required, document and evidence presentation in the courtroom and video conferencing. A further Practice Direction will issue in due course in respect of arrangements for lodgement of documentation electronically to facilitate presentation of the same electronically in the courtroom.
Schedule
Commercial proceedings for the purposes of Order 63A, Rules of the Superior Courts"Commercial proceedings" means: (a) proceedings in respect of any claim or counterclaim, not being a claim or counterclaim for damages for personal injuries, arising from or relating to any one or more of the following: (i) a business document, business contract or business dispute where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(ii) the determination of any question of construction arising in respect of a business document or business contract where the value of the transaction the subject matter thereof is not less than €1,000,000;
(iii) the purchase or sale of commodities where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(iv) the export or import of goods where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(v) the carriage of goods by land, sea, air or pipeline where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(vi) the exploitation of oil or gas reserves or any other natural resource where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(vii) insurance or re-insurance where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(viii) the provision of services (not including medical, quasi-medical or dental services or any service provided under a contract of employment) where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(ix) the operation of markets or exchanges in stocks, shares or other financial or investment instruments, or in commodities where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(x) the construction of any vehicle, vessel or aircraft where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(xi) business agency where the value of the claim or counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(b) proceedings in respect of any other claim or counterclaim, not being a claim or counterclaim for damages for personal injuries, which the Judge of the High Court Commercial List, having regard to the commercial and any other aspect thereof, considers appropriate for entry in the High Court Commercial List;
(c) any application or proceedings under the Arbitration Acts 1954 to 1998 (other than an application in pursuance of section 5 of the Arbitration Act, 1980 to stay proceedings in respect of a matter referred to arbitration) where the value of the claim or any counterclaim is not less than €1,000,000;
(d) any proceedings instituted or any application or reference made or appeal lodged under the provisions of the Patents Act, 1992, not including an application under section 108(4) of that Act;
(e) any proceedings instituted, application made or appeal lodged under - (i) the Trade Marks Act, 1996;
(ii) the Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000;
(iii) the Industrial Designs Act, 2001;
(f) any proceedings instituted for relief in respect of passing off;
(g) any appeal from, or application for judicial review of, a decision or determination made or a direction given by a person or body authorised by statute to make such decision or determination or give such direction, where the Judge of the High Court Commercial List considers that the appeal or application is, having regard to the commercial or any other aspect thereof, appropriate for entry in the High Court Commercial List.
Dated this 12th day of January 2004
Joseph Finnegan
President of the High Court |