The legal profession is divided into lawyers and lawyers. Lawyers handle legal transactions outside of court such as the transfer of real estate, the management of deceased persons` assets, and the formation of joint-stock companies. They also attend the court and, although they have the right to be heard by all courts, most of their work in this area includes cases before the district courts and appeals before the circuit court. The Incorporated Law Society of Ireland was founded in 1852 and acts as the regulatory body for the legal profession. The competence of these courts includes the power to review the conformity of laws with the Constitution and to judicially review laws, decisions or subordinate actions of the Government or State organs in order to determine their legality and compatibility with the Constitution and principles deriving from the Constitution, such as due process. Ireland has a common law legal system, similar to that of the United Kingdom, but Ireland differs from Great Britain in that it has a written constitution. The current Irish constitution – Bunreacht na hÉireann – was ratified by the Irish people in 1937 and is the fundamental law of the state. It defines the functions of the State and its authorities, regulates the fundamental rights of Irish citizens and determines the separation of powers within the State. The “enumerated” or explicit rights contained in the Constitution include, but are not limited to, the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association. Article 40 also contains provisions on the so-called habeas corpus procedure, which allows a person to challenge the lawfulness of his detention. Articles 41 and 42 concern the rights of the family and education.
Article 43 refers to the citizen`s right to private property, and article 44 guarantees the right to freely practise one`s religion and prohibits the endowment of a particular religion by the State. Although protected by the Constitution, none of these rights is absolute and may be restricted for reasons of State security, the maintenance of public peace and order, and when the requirements of the common good require such a restriction. As in any common law system, Irish courts are bound by the stare decisis doctrine of applying clear precedents set by higher courts and courts of coordinated jurisdiction. The main exception to this rule is that the Supreme Court has declared itself unbound by its own previous decisions. [14] Articles 34 to 38 of the Constitution govern the Irish judicial system and prosecution. Article 34 expressly provides that “jurisdiction shall be exercised before the courts established by law by judges appointed in the manner provided for in this Constitution”. Article 35 provides for the appointment and term of office of members of the Irish judiciary who, according to the wording of that section, “shall be independent in the exercise of their judicial functions and shall be subject only to the provisions of this Constitution and the law”. Under section 35.4.4 of the Constitution, members of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court may be removed from office only by decision of both Houses of the Oireachta for established misconduct or incapacity. The term of office of judges of circuit courts and district courts is also protected by law. Furthermore, according to article 35.5.1 of the Constitution, the remuneration of a judge during his term of office may be reduced only under article 35.5. The Constitution provides for a tripartite separation of powers: legislative, executive and judicial. The Government is the organ of the State which exercises the executive power of the Government, the two Houses of Parliament, consisting of the Oireachtas (whose titular head is the President, in addition to his constitutional status as Head of State), exercise the legislative power of the Government, and the courts established by Article 34 of the Constitution exercise the judicial power of the Government.
This ensures that no organ of the State can interfere with the functions assigned to the other two. Articles 12 to 14 define the functions of the President of Ireland, who is the Head of State. The powers conferred on the president are largely ceremonial, although the constitution also provides for several discretionary powers. Notwithstanding the separation of powers, the courts exercise a constitutional function of reviewing the constitutionality and legality of the acts of other State bodies. In the common law legal system, disputes are resolved through an adversarial exchange of arguments and evidence. Both sides present their arguments to a neutral investigator, either in the form of judges and jurors or before one or more judges sitting alone. The judge and/or jury in the case evaluates the evidence, applies the law to the facts of the case, and renders a verdict in favour of one of the parties. If one of the parties is not satisfied with the decision, he or she may appeal the decision to a court of appeal. Free legal aid is available when needed in criminal cases and, to a lesser extent, in civil cases. The Brehon Laws were a relatively sophisticated Irish legal system, the practice of which was not eventually eradicated until Cromwell`s conquest of Ireland. The Brehon laws were just a civil legal system – there was no criminal law. Acts that would be considered punishable today were treated in the same way as tort law today.
An abuser should compensate the victim instead of being given a sentence such as imprisonment. The structure of the Irish judicial system can be found here:Diagram of the Irish judicial system Ireland was the subject of the first expansion of the English common law system outside England. [12] While in England the creation of the common law was largely the result of the approximation of existing customary law, in Ireland the common law was imported from England and replaced Irish customary law. [13] However, this was a gradual process that coincided with English (and later British) influence in Ireland. The Irish Constitution was adopted by referendum on 1 July 1937 and entered into force on 29 July 1937. December of the same year. [3] The Constitution is the cornerstone of the Irish legal system and is regarded as the source of power exercised by the legislative, judicial and executive branches. The Irish Supreme Court and the Supreme Court exercise judicial review over all laws and may repeal laws if they are incompatible with the Constitution. [4] The Constitution is the channel through which the judiciary is administered and legal rights are enforced in legally established courts. Through its express provisions, it recognises and guarantees the protection of the fundamental rights of individuals.
According to Article 6 of the Constitution, sovereignty belongs to the Irish people, although the State is sovereign externally in terms of its position in matters of international law. The state, Ireland, is responsible before the courts for injustice committed against individuals for violation of their constitutional or statutory rights. The Constitution can only be amended after a referendum, as provided for in article 46. The first and second Dáil were in opposition to British rule in Ireland. The laws passed by the First and Second Dáil had no official legal effect. The Irish legal system has three main sources of law – constitutional law, law and common law. Since its accession to the European Economic Community (EEC) on 1 January 1973, Ireland has also acceded to European Union law. Irish law consists of constitutional, statutory and common law. The supreme law of the state is the Constitution of Ireland, from which all other laws derive their authority. The Republic has a common law legal system with a written constitution providing for parliamentary democracy based on the British parliamentary system,[1] but with a popularly elected president, separation of powers, a developed system of constitutional rights, and judicial review of primary law. [2] The common law is a set of legal provisions formed by previous court decisions. In reaching its decision, the General Court relies on earlier case-law, also known as `precedent`, and applies it to the problem or question of the present case, but only where the facts are essentially the same.