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Applications to Supreme Court up 10% in 2023

The number of applications for leave to appeal filed in the Supreme Court last year rose by 10% to 160, its annual report shows.

The 160 applications determined by the court represented an increase of 8% compared with 2022.

Writing in the report, registrar John Mahon said that, by the end of the year, litigants granted leave to appeal could expect a hearing within 20 weeks.

“In this context, the court essentially had no backlog of appeals awaiting a hearing date,” he stated.

Mahon also noted that an upgraded video-technology system installed in the main courtroom during August had improved the overall quality and experience for participants during video-enabled hearings.

‘Leapfrog’ appeals

The report shows that the court granted 35% of applications for leave. It granted 58% of applications for ‘leapfrog’ appeal – appeals coming directly from the High Court in matters of public importance.

The Supreme Court delivered 61 judgments during the year and made one request for a preliminary ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union.

During the year, the court also gave its judgment on the constitutionality of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2022, which was referred to it by President Higgins.

The report shows that it takes an average of between four and five weeks from the filing of complete documents for the court to determine whether to grant an application for leave.

Procedural issues

Procedural issues gave rise to the highest number of applications for leave to appeal in 2023 (25% of applications), according to the report.

These mainly involved applications for an extension of time to appeal or general aspects of civil procedure.

The substantive area of law that led to the highest number of applications for leave to appeal in 2023 was criminal law (16%), followed by statutory interpretation (8%) and judicial reviews of planning and environmental issues (6%).

The report was published as the court launched a new website that includes its latest news, judgments, and speeches.