Further tightening of the rules governing Judicial Review appears increasingly likely.
The Minister for Justice recently said that it is “abhorrent to the common good” that infrastructure projects are being held up by technical breaches of statutory rules or legal procedure.
Mr O’Callaghan said that “Laws are there to serve the common good…they should not be viewed as a game that can be won or lost depending on absolute compliance with our ever-growing statutory architecture or rules of procedure.”
In particular, it is reported that the Government seeks to require that applicants for Judicial Review have a direct interest in its subject matter. Such change may roll back the more relaxed rule of ‘standing’ enjoyed by environmental groups for decades (see my e-mail newsletter of 20 March 2025, subscribe using box in botom right-hand corner of screen).
Such an approach will conflict with what Humphreys J has said recently;
“Any rigid demand that there should be some demonstrated practical benefit for the [applicant] is ultimately misplaced when held against the concept of equality before the law – nobody normally asks whether certiorari is of benefit to an environmental challenger who is simply taken as exercising her right of access to the court.” (Ventaway Ltd v An Coimisiún Pleanála [2025] IEHC 406 §45, 16 July 2025)
The major part of the Minister’s “ever-growing statutory architecture” is the Government’s implementation of the 630+ section Planning and Development Act 2024. The reform of Judicial Review already legislated under Part 9 PDA 2024 will apply to planning decisions taken under Parts 3 and 4 of the new Act which are yet to be commenced (see my e-mail newsletter of 11 September 2025).
The High Court will indeed be clogged with JR if it becomes of advantage to developers to (i) spot and then test ‘technical’ rules which may be breached with impunity and (ii) argue that a particular project is in the “common good” (presumably under some legal definition of same under Article 6.1 of the Constitution?)
A clash between the “common good” and the “rule of law”, the “cornerstone of the Irish legal system” (Hardiman J, Maguire v Ardagh [2002] 1 IR 385, 567), is inevitable.