S.I. No. 218/2025 - District Court (Digital) Rules 2025

1. In this Order

“statement of truth” means a statement of truth for the time being required or authorised by these Rules to be made in place of an affidavit or statutory declaration, in accordance with

section 21

of the

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020

, and which is or is intended to be transmitted to or by a network for the purposes of civil proceedings in the Court;

“relevant document” has the same meaning as in

section 2

of the

Statutory Declarations Act 1938

.

2. (1) Where any affidavit is required or permitted to be lodged or delivered in any proceedings in which digital delivery is for the time being authorised in accordance with Order 39A

(a) the lodgment or filing of a statement of truth shall satisfy any obligation to lodge, or, as the case may be, to file an affidavit;

(b) the service of a statement of truth shall satisfy any obligation to serve an affidavit;

(c) the party or person concerned may make and transmit a statement of truth in lieu of swearing and filing an affidavit; and

(d) the provisions of this Order shall apply to every such statement of truth.

(2) This Order applies to statements of truth whether made within or outside the State.

3. The provisions of these Rules which confer an entitlement to examine or cross-examine, or to apply to cross-examine, the deponent to any affidavit shall apply

mutatis mutandis

to the maker of any statement of truth. The Court may, on the application of any party, direct the attendance for cross-examination of the maker of any such statement of truth.

4. (1) A statement of truth

(a) may only be made within the network, in accordance with the terms and conditions of use for the time being in effect concerning the network, and any instructions for the maker provided on the network;

(b) shall be made by being signed by the maker using an electronic signature;

(c) shall include each of the following statements

“- I have an honest belief that the facts stated in this Statement of Truth are true.

- I understand that it is a crime to make a Statement of Truth if I do not honestly believe it is true.

- I understand that if I make a false Statement of Truth, I may have to go to prison, pay a fine, or both.”

(2) Where any document is intended to be exhibited to a statement of truth

(a) in any case in which exhibits are required to be transmitted to the network with the statement of truth, the statement of truth shall identify the exhibit or sequence of exhibits, or

(b) in any other case, the maker shall, prior to signing the statement of truth, mark each exhibit for identification purposes by signing or as otherwise provided in any Practice Direction,

and each such exhibit is subject to the requirements of rule 6.

5. (1) A statement of truth may only be filed by being transmitted, in accordance with the terms and conditions of use for the time being in effect concerning the network, and any instructions for the filing of statements of truth provided on the network, by a digital user

(a) who is a solicitor, or which is a firm of solicitors or a legal partnership for the time being on record for the maker of the statement of truth concerned, or, as the case may be, the party on whose behalf the statement of truth concerned is made, and who has, or which has, verified the identity of the maker of the statement of truth concerned;

(b) who is a natural person on whose behalf as a party to proceedings the statement of truth concerned is made and who has verified the identity of the maker of the statement of truth concerned; or

(c) who is a natural person making the statement of truth concerned on his or her own behalf as a party to proceedings in which the statement of truth concerned is made.

(2) Where a solicitor makes a statement of truth on behalf of a client to ground an application in proceedings in which the solicitor has no personal interest, it shall not be necessary for the solicitor’s identity to be independently verified and it shall suffice for the solicitor to provide his or her Law Society solicitor number.

6. (1) Notwithstanding sub-rules (2) and (3), it shall be and remain the obligation of the party filing any statement of truth to retain all exhibits to any statement of truth, which remain subject to the directions of any court before which such statement of truth is, or may be, relied upon or opened.

(2) Where so required by Practice Direction, copies of each exhibit to a statement of truth shall be uploaded to the network when the statement of truth concerned is transmitted for filing on the network. Such copies shall be made available on the network to the parties and the Court only for such period as is provided in the terms and conditions for use of the network, and may thereafter, subject to the direction of the Court, any Practice Direction, and any other requirement of law, be deleted from the network.

(3) In any case in which sub-rule (2) does not apply, and where the network so facilitates, the parties may agree to upload to the network copies of exhibits. Such copies shall be made available on the network to the parties and the Court only for such period as is provided in the terms and conditions for use of the network, and may thereafter, subject to the direction of the Court, any Practice Direction, and any other requirement of law, be deleted from the network.

7. (1) A statement of truth filed by a digital user mentioned in rule 5(i)(a) shall, unless rule 5(2) applies, include or have associated with it a certificate that a named solicitor has satisfied himself or herself of the identity of the maker by reference to a relevant document, or that the maker is personally known to a named solicitor.

(2) A statement of truth filed by a digital user mentioned in rule 5(i)(b) shall include or have associated with it a certificate that the person filing the statement of truth has satisfied himself or herself of the identity of the maker by reference to a relevant document, or that the maker is personally known to the person filing the statement of truth.

(3) Nothing in this rule limits the power of a court to inquire into the circumstances in which a statement of truth was made or to require or permit further evidence of the matters contained in a statement of truth.

8. The filing of a statement of truth in accordance with rule 5 shall satisfy any requirement of these Rules for the filing of an affidavit with the Clerk.

9. Where a special time is limited for filing any statement of truth, no statement of truth filed after that time shall be used, unless by leave of the Court.

II. Formal requirements

10. Every statement of truth shall be entitled in the same form as would be used in an affidavit sworn in the cause or matter concerned or shall capture and confirm the title and record number of the cause or matter as recorded on the network.

11. A statement of truth shall be confined to such facts as the maker is able of his or her own knowledge to prove, and shall state the maker’s means of knowledge thereof, except on interlocutory motions, on which statements as to the maker’s belief, with the grounds thereof, may be admitted. The costs of any statement of truth which shall unnecessarily set forth matters of hearsay or argumentative matter, or copies of or extracts from documents, shall not be allowed.

12. (1) Every statement of truth shall state the maker’s description, trade, profession, or employment, and

(i) the maker’s place of business, trade, profession, or employment, or

(ii) the maker’s true place of abode.

(2) Every statement of truth shall state that the maker is over 18 years of age, but if the maker is under 18 years of age, the statement of truth must state the maker’s exact age.

13. Every statement of truth shall capture or record the date on which it is made and the place where is made.

14. There shall be included in or associated with every statement of truth a record showing on whose behalf it is filed, and no statement of truth shall be used without such record, unless the Court shall otherwise direct.

15. The Court may receive any statement of truth made for the purpose of being used in civil proceedings in the Court

(a) despite any defect by misdescription of the parties, or

(b) despite any other irregularity in its form,

and where the Court does so, it may direct a memorandum to be made on the document (which may be done by electronic means) that it has been so received.

16. (1) Statements of truth may be made only in a language supported by the network.

(2) A person who is not capable of making a statement of truth in a language supported by the network may make a foreign language affidavit in accordance with Order 50, and the translator may make a statement of truth in which

(i) the translator sets out his or her qualifications as a translator,

(ii) copies of the foreign language affidavit and the translator’s original translation thereof are exhibited, and

(iii) the translator confirms that the translation is accurate.”

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(

This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.

)

These are rules to facilitate the digitalisation of civil proceedings, including digital filing, lodgment, and service of documents, and to provide for electronic transmission of a Statement of Truth in place of an affidavit.

17. (1) Where any provision of any enactment, of these Rules or the existing practice of the Court, requires or permits that any court document or document be served upon any person, such requirement may be satisfied in any case where the person to be served is or becomes a digital user by the transmission by digital delivery of the court document or document through the network to the person concerned, and in any such case any record generated by or within the network of such transmission may be produced as evidence of such service in lieu of any statutory declaration of service. (Where the person to be served is not a digital user, such person shall be served with a printed copy of the court document or document in such other manner as is permitted in the circumstances by these Rules.)

(2) Sub-rule (1) does not apply in any case where these Rules or the existing practice of the Court require personal service, but any requirement that a person being served personally with a court document be shown any original or copy of the court document shall, where the court document concerned has been issued by digital delivery, be satisfied by serving the person personally with a copy of the court document concerned and, at the same time, providing the person with a written statement that the court document concerned has been issued by digital delivery.

VII. Misuse of digital delivery network

Reference to Court

18. (1) Where a party alleges that another person has improperly used permissions available to a digital user to prejudice that party in any proceedings, the party aggrieved may apply to the Court by motion on notice, grounded on an affidavit, and the Court may make such order or give such directions as are just in the circumstances.

(2) Where a Clerk is concerned that a person has improperly used permissions available to a digital user to prejudice a party in any proceedings, the Clerk may refer the matter to the Court on notice to the parties concerned, and the Court may make such order or give such directions as are just in the circumstances.”

Schedule 2

“Order 50A

Statements of Truth

I. General

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of

30

th May,

2025.

The District Court Rules Committee, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by

section 91

of the

Courts of Justice Act 1924

,

section 72

of the

Courts of Justice Act 1936

,

section 34

of the

Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961

, and

sections 20

and

21

of the

Civil Law and Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2020

, with the concurrence of the Minister for Justice, make the following rules of court.

Dated this 3rd day of December 2024.

Paul Kelly (Chairperson)

Alan Mitchell

Joyce Good Hammond

Ciara McMahon

James Finn

Eoin Manning

I concur in the making of the following rules of court.

Dated this 28th day of May 2025.

Jim O’Callaghan

Minister for Justice