It starts with the Constitution
Article 34 of Bunreacht na hÉireann says that justice shall be administered in courts established by law, by judges appointed under the Constitution, and, except in special and limited cases, in public. That last part is why you can walk into almost any Irish courtroom and watch. The exceptions include family law and most cases involving children, which are heard in private to protect the people involved.
01 · District Court
Where most people meet the law
€15,000upper limit for civil claims in the District Court
The District Court is the busiest court in the State and the one most people will ever see. It hears minor criminal offences, many family law matters such as maintenance and guardianship, licensing, and civil claims up to €15,000. A judge sits alone, without a jury. The Children Court, for young people accused of offences, is part of the District Court.
02 · Circuit Court
Bigger claims, and juries
€75,000upper limit for most civil claims in the Circuit Court (€60,000 for personal injuries)
The Circuit Court hears civil claims up to €75,000 (€60,000 for personal injuries), divorce and judicial separation, and appeals from the District Court. On its criminal side it tries most serious offences before a judge and a jury of twelve.
03 · High Court
No upper limit
No limiton the damages the High Court can award
The High Court has full original jurisdiction: it can hear any civil case, with no limit on damages, and it decides challenges to the lawfulness of decisions by public bodies. When it tries the most serious crimes, such as murder and rape, it sits as the Central Criminal Court, with a jury.
One criminal court sits without a jury: the Special Criminal Court, which the Constitution allows where ordinary courts are judged inadequate to secure justice. It mostly hears cases involving organised crime and paramilitary activity.
04 · Juries
Twelve citizens
10 of 12the smallest majority verdict a judge can accept
Jurors are chosen at random from the electoral register, the same list you vote from. In a criminal trial they decide guilt; the judge decides the sentence. If the jury cannot reach a unanimous verdict after at least two hours, the judge can accept a majority of ten to two.
05 · Appeals
The Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court
2014the year the Court of Appeal began sitting
The Court of Appeal was created by referendum in 2013 and opened in 2014 to clear a backlog of appeals that had built up in the Supreme Court. It now hears most appeals from the High Court and criminal appeals from the Circuit and Central Criminal Courts.
The Supreme Court is the final court of appeal. It chooses which cases to hear, taking those that raise a matter of general public importance, or where the interests of justice require it.
06 · Judicial review
Striking down a law
Art. 34.3.2°the Constitution’s power to decide whether a law is valid
The Oireachtas cannot pass a law that breaks the Constitution. If someone challenges a law, the High Court, and on appeal the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, can decide it is invalid. The President can also refer a bill to the Supreme Court before signing it, under Article 26, and a bill the Court upholds cannot be challenged again.
The courts can do something no TD can: strike down a law that breaks the Constitution.
07 · Judges
Who the judges are
1 Jan 2025the Judicial Appointments Commission was established
Judges are appointed by the President, on the advice of the Government. Since 1 January 2025 the Judicial Appointments Commission, a nine-member body chaired by the Chief Justice, interviews candidates and recommends them to the Government, replacing the older advisory board. Once appointed, Article 35 makes judges independent in their judicial work, and they can only be removed by both Houses of the Oireachtas for stated misbehaviour or incapacity.
How busy the courts are
In 2025, 379,262 new criminal matters came before the courts and almost 188,000 new civil cases were started, according to the Courts Service’s annual report. The Oireachtas has approved more judges to keep up: 24 in 2023 and 21 more in legislation enacted in January 2026, about a 25% increase since 2023.
Three branches
The Constitution splits power three ways. The Oireachtas makes the law. The Government carries it out. The courts decide what it means, and whether it is allowed. That is why every law starts with a vote in the Dáil, and why that vote matters long after the debate ends. On DáilDex you can follow your TDs and see how they voted on each bill, or learn how a bill becomes law.
This guide explains how the system works; it is not legal advice. If you need help with a legal problem, Citizens Information, FLAC and the Legal Aid Board are good places to start.
About the film
Before the Court is our second narrated documentary, after Locked Out. An Irish narrator voice reads a fact-checked script, and the picture, captions and score are timed to every word. Every take is transcribed back to check the pronunciation of words like Oireachtas and Dáil. The five illustrations of the Four Courts, a District Court, a jury box, the rotunda and a judge’s chambers are AI-generated in a single art direction, and two of them move: a push-in on the Four Courts across the Liffey and a tilt up into the dome, both made with Hailuo 3 Max. The ladder of courts, Article 34 and the other graphics are designed.
Sources
- Bunreacht na hÉireann (Constitution of Ireland), Irish Statute Book
- Courts Service of Ireland: understanding the courts system
- Citizens Information: courts
- Courts Service Annual Report 2025
- Juries Act 1976
- Criminal Justice Act 1984, section 25 (majority verdicts)
- Government of Ireland: Judicial Appointments Commission established
Keep going
- Students hub: for CSPE and Politics and Society.
- Ask Dex: “what does the Court of Appeal do?” or “how is a judge removed?”
- All DáilDex films
— The DáilDex team