Resources
Justice Indicators assessing Ireland’s justice system published by the Centre for Justice and Law Reform
- Public trust in courts and judiciary 27% higher in Ireland compared to the OECD average
- Per capita spending on courts in Ireland 25% less than the Council of Europe average
- Court proceedings take 3 times longer in Ireland compared to the Council of Europe average
- Ireland had the lowest number of judges per 100,000 population in the Council of Europe
- Ireland’s homicide rate 40% lower than EU average
- Ireland’s rate of sexual offences 43% higher than the EU average
- Number of Gardaí per 100,000 population is decreasing but above average across jurisdictions reviewed
The Law Society of Ireland’s Centre for Justice and Law Reform today published its inaugural Justice Indicators report, which provides an assessment of the performance of core elements of Ireland’s justice system compared to other jurisdictions.
Using a traffic light system, the Justice Indicators evaluate the resourcing, effectiveness, and efficiency of the Irish justice system across four critical areas: trust, policing, courts and prisons.
The Justice Indicators demonstrate how core areas of the Irish justice system are performing by drawing on more than 100 national and international data sources. These include the European Commission; the Council of Europe; the OECD; Eurostat and the Central Statistics Office (CSO); the Courts Service; the Office of the Inspector of Prisons; the Policing and Community Safety Authority; the Department of Justice; and a wide range of academic and NGO reports and publications.
Using the latest available data, the paper produces a total of 15 Justice Indicators which show that:
- Public trust in the Gardai, judiciary and courts is comparatively high in Ireland
- Per capita spending on Gardai is higher than the EU average; but the number of Gardai per 100,000 population has fallen
- While Ireland's rate of intentional homicide (including murder) is consistently lower than the EU average, Ireland has a comparatively high rate of sexual offences
- The number of Gardaí per 100,000 population in Ireland is decreasing but above the average of six other jurisdictions, including some neighbouring countries
The Justice Indicators also show that:
- Per capita spending on courts in Ireland (€38.23) is 25% less than the European average (€50.70)
- Court cases in Ireland take three times longer compared to the estimated European average, calculated by the Council of Europe
- Ireland has the lowest number of judges per 100,000 population among Member States of the Council of Europe
- Per capita spending on Irish prisons in Ireland (€50.59) is 16% less than the EU average (€60.06) while prison occupancy rates were higher than the EU average
- The average sentence served in Irish prisons (5-7 months) was lower than the Council of Europe average (10-11 months)
“The Centre for Justice and Law Reform is a research centre established by the Law Society to improve the justice system and shape law reform to better serve the public interest. Reform of the justice system should be underpinned by reliable data and rigorous analysis. This approach enhances the quality of policymaking and will reinforce public trust and confidence. It is our hope that this research paper will assist all policymakers who impact the justice system in the allocation of resources, and support the development of fair, transparent, and effective justice policies.”
“The purpose of this Justice Indicators research paper is to provide policymakers with reliable and objective evidence to inform decision making. The report makes it clear that there is an urgent need for more comprehensive and transparent data collection and reporting across the Irish justice system. The Centre for Justice and Law Reform has made 16 specific recommendations around improvements to data collection and reporting that should be prioritised. The justice system is critical infrastructure in a democratic country as well as a modern economy and not one we should take for granted. The most recent Programme for Government makes clear the desire to have more evidence-based decision making to help identify policy and programmes that work and where resources can be most effectively deployed to improve outcomes for everyone. These recommendations relate to the Courts Service, An Garda Siochana, the Council of Europe, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and the Department of Justice.”
