EU report names Ireland as only jurisdiction without disciplinary body for judges

The 2019 EU Justice Scoreboard notes that the only available process is impeachment by a majority in both Houses of the Oireachtas.

Under the Judicial Council Bill currently being taken forward by the Government, complaints against judges which fail to to satisfy the level necessary for impeachment will be heard for the first time.

The seventh edition of the EU Justice Scoreboard is the first one to provide an overview of disciplinary regimes regarding judges in national justice systems and safeguards in place to prevent political control of judicial decisions.

Věra Jourová, European commissioner for justice, consumers and gender equality, said: “The 2019 EU Justice Scoreboard comes at a time when challenges to the rule of law are mounting in some places in Europe. I am pleased to see that many countries continue to improve their judiciary.

“Sadly, some others are reversing the positive trends. There are still too many EU citizens who don’t see their justice systems as independent and who are waiting too long for justice to be served.”