Residential Tenancies Act 2004

• (3) The Director, under the direction of the Board, shall cause to be kept on a continuous basis and in a legible or a machine readable form or both all proper books and records of account of all income and expenditure of the Board, and of the sources of such income and the subject matter of such expenditure, and of the property, assets and liabilities of the Board; the Director shall also keep and shall account to the Board for all such special accounts as the Minister or the Board, with the consent of the Minister, may from time to time direct should be kept.

• (4) The financial year of the Board shall be the period of 12 months ending on 31 December in any year and, for the purposes of section 174, this section and section 178, the period commencing on the establishment day and ending on the following 31 December shall be deemed to be a financial year.

177A. F480[Designated tenancy deposit account

177A.— ...]

177B. F481[Withdrawal by Board of interest from designated tenancy deposit account

177B.— ...]

178. Further provisions with respect to accounts (including their audit).

178.—(1) The Board, the Director and any relevant member of the staff of the Board shall, whenever so requested by the Minister, permit any person appointed by the Minister to examine the books or other records of account of the Board in respect of any financial year or other period and shall facilitate any such examination, and the Board shall pay such fee therefor as may be fixed by the Minister.

• (2) In subsection (1) “relevant member of the staff of the Board” means a member of the staff of the Board to whom there has been duly assigned functions relating to the books or other records of account referred to in that subsection.

• (3) The accounts of the Board for each financial year shall be prepared in such a form and manner as may be specified by the Minister and be prepared by the Director and approved by the Board as soon as practicable but not later than three months after the end of the financial year to which they relate for submission, as soon as practicable, to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit.

• (4) A copy of such of the accounts referred to in subsection (3) as the Minister directs and the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General thereon shall be presented to the members of the Board and to the Minister, as soon as practicable after the audit of them is completed, and the Minister shall cause a copy of those documents to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

179. Accountability of Director to Oireachtas Committees.

179.—(1) The Director shall, whenever he or she is so required by a Committee of Dáil Éireann established under the Standing Orders of Dáil Éireann to examine and report to Dáil Éireann on the appropriation accounts and reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General, give evidence to that Committee on—

• (a) the regularity and propriety of the transactions recorded or required to be recorded in any account subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General which the Director or the Board is required by or under statute to prepare,

• (b) the economy and efficiency of the Board in the use of its resources,

• (c) the systems, procedures and practices employed by the Board for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of its operations, and

• (d) any matter affecting the Board referred to in a special report of the Comptroller and Auditor General under section 11(2) of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993 or in any other report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (in so far as it relates to a matter specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (c)) that is laid before Dáil Éireann.

• (2) The Director shall, at the request in writing of any other Oireachtas Committee, attend before it and give evidence to it on any matter related to the functions of the Board.

• (3) In subsection (2), “other Oireachtas Committee” means a committee appointed by either House of the Oireachtas or jointly by both Houses of the Oireachtas (other than the committee referred to in subsection (1)) or a subcommittee of such a committee.

180. Reports and information to Minister.

180.—(1) The Board shall, not later than 30 June in each year subsequent to the year in which the establishment day falls, make a report to the Minister (in this section referred to as the “annual report”) in such form as the Minister any approve, on the performance of its functions and activities during the preceding year and the Minister shall cause copies of each annual report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

• (2) Each annual report shall include information in such form and regarding such matters as the Minister may direct.

• (3) The Board may, from time to time, make such other reports to the Minister relating to its functions as it thinks fit and shall, whenever so requested by the Minister, supply to the Minister such information, in addition to that provided in its annual report, regarding the performance of its functions as the Minister may from time to time require.

• (4) The Board may publish such other reports on matters related to its activities and functions as it may from time to time consider relevant and appropriate.

180A. F483[Reports to Minister concerning determination of complaints under section 76A

180A.— ...]

181. Reports to Board.

181.—(1) The Board may, on its request, be furnished with reports on any matter which, in the Board’s opinion, concerns the F484[…] rented sector by the appropriate Minister of the Government or local authority who or which has responsibility for the area to which the matter pertains.

• (2) The Board may make a report furnished to the Board under this section available to the Minister.

• (3) In this section “F485[rented sector]” has the same meaning as it has in section 151.

PART 9 Miscellaneous

182. Limitation on certain disputes being the subject of court proceedings.

182.—(1) On and from the commencement of Part 6, proceedings may not be instituted in any court in respect of a dispute that may be referred to the Board for resolution under that Part unless one or more of the following reliefs is being claimed in the proceedings—

• (a) damages of an amount of more than €20,000,

• (b) recovery of arrears of rent or other charges, or both, due under a tenancy of an amount, or an aggregate amount, of more than €60,000 or such lesser amount as would be applicable in the circumstances concerned by virtue of section 115(3)(b) or (c)(ii).

• (2) In this section “dispute” has the same meaning as it has in Part 6.

183. Guidelines to Board.

183.—(1) The Minister may, from time to time, issue to the Board such guidelines in relation to the performance of its functions under this Act (other than functions under Part 6) as he or she considers appropriate and the Board shall have regard to such guidelines in the performance of those functions.

• (2) The Minister may amend or revoke guidelines issued under this section.

184. Voidance of provisions designed to facilitate terminations.

184.—(1) A provision of a lease or tenancy agreement in relation to a dwelling that imposes an obligation on a party (the “first party”) to do or refrain from doing any thing is void if, from all the circumstances (including any of the matters specified in subsection (3)), it is a reasonable inference that the sole or main purpose for the provision being included is that mentioned in subsection (2).

• (2) That purpose is to allow the other party (the “second party”) to serve a notice of termination in respect of the tenancy concerned (for a failure to comply with the provision) for any reason that suits the interests of that party at the particular time rather than because the failure to comply has occurred.

• (3) The matters mentioned in subsection (1) are—

• (a) the provision concerned cannot, in its ordinary operation, be reasonably regarded as conferring any practical benefit on the second party or in respect of his or her interest in the dwelling,

• (b) compliance with the provision concerned by the first party is likely to be impracticable,

• (c) the terms in which the provision concerned is framed are such that the situations in which the provision must be complied with and those in which it need not be complied with are arbitrary.

• (4) Any tenancy or sub-tenancy of a dwelling (the “first-mentioned tenancy”) purported to be created is void if, from all the circumstances, it is a reasonable inference that it is a transaction not of a bona fide nature effected at arm's length but effected solely or mainly for the purpose of facilitating the termination (through collusion between some or all of the parties to that transaction) of any sub-tenancy created out of the first-mentioned tenancy.

• (5) If the first-mentioned tenancy in subsection (4) is void by reason of that subsection any sub-tenancy created out of it that is not so void shall be deemed to be a tenancy held by the person in whose favour the sub-tenancy was granted from the person who purported to create the first-mentioned tenancy (but of no greater term than the term of the sub-tenancy).

185. Obligation to inform prospective sub-tenant of nature of tenancy.

185.—(1) A tenant of a dwelling who proposes to create in favour of any person a sub-tenancy out of the tenancy shall, before he or she—

• (a) creates the sub-tenancy, or

• (b) if its creation is preceded by the entering into of an agreement to create (whether the word “create” or any other word is used) such a tenancy, enters into that agreement,

inform the person of the fact that it is a sub-tenancy that will be created in the person's favour.

• (2) A person who fails to comply with subsection (1) is guilty of an offence.

• (3) If, in respect of the entering into of an agreement referred to in paragraph (b) of subsection (1), a failure to comply with that subsection occurs, the agreement shall not be enforceable by the tenant referred to in that subsection.

186. Tenant may terminate where consent to assignment or sub-letting withheld.

186.—(1) This section has effect—

• (a) despite the fact that the tenancy concerned is one for a fixed period, and

• (b) despite anything to the contrary in the lease or tenancy agreement concerned.

• (2) If a landlord of a dwelling refuses his or her consent to an assignment or sub-letting of the tenancy concerned by the tenant, the tenant may serve a notice of termination in respect of the tenancy and terminate it accordingly.

• (3) The period of notice to be given by that notice of termination is—

• (a) that specified in section 66, or

• (b) such lesser period of notice as may be agreed between the landlord and the tenant in accordance with section 69,

even if the lease or tenancy agreement provides for a greater period of notice to be given.

187. Duty of management companies in relation to certain complaints.

187.—(1) This section applies where a tenant of a dwelling which is one of a number of dwellings comprising an apartment complex makes a complaint of the kind referred to in section 12(1)(h) to the landlord of the dwelling and that complaint (the “relevant complaint”) is forwarded to the management company of the complex (the “relevant company”).

• (2) Where this section applies the relevant company, in performing any of its functions in relation to the apartment complex concerned, shall have regard to the relevant complaint and shall furnish to the landlord mentioned in subsection (1) (for the purpose of its being forwarded to the tenant concerned) a statement in writing as to the steps, if any, it has taken to deal with the matter or matters to which the complaint relates.

188. Provision of information in relation to service charges by management companies.

188.—(1) A tenant of a dwelling which is one of a number of dwellings comprising an apartment complex may request the management company (if any) of the complex (“the company”) to furnish to him or her particulars in writing of the service charges made by the company in respect of the dwelling in a specified period and how those charges have been calculated.

• (2) Subject to subsection (3), it shall be the duty of the company to comply with such a request.

• (3) If the owner of the dwelling were to make a request of the company to furnish to him or her the particulars mentioned in subsection (1) and the company would not be obliged to furnish all of those particulars to him or her then the duty of the company under subsection (2) shall be read as extending only to the particulars that the company would be obliged to furnish to the owner were such a request to be made.

• (4) In this section “service charges” means charges made by the company in respect of the performance of functions by it in relation to the apartment complex concerned.

189. Jurisdiction in aid of Part 6 resolution procedure.

189.—(1) In this section “dispute” means a dispute falling within the jurisdiction of the Board under Part 6.

• (2) The following provisions have effect if the circumstances giving rise to or involving the dispute are such that, were proceedings in the Circuit Court to be brought in relation to the dispute, it would be appropriate to apply to that court for interim or interlocutory relief in the matter.

• (3) On being requested by the person (the “referrer”) who has referred or is referring a dispute to it to do so, the Board may apply, on the referrer's behalf, to the Circuit Court for such interim or interlocutory relief in the matter as the Board considers appropriate.

• (4) In deciding whether to accede to such a request the Board may have regard to—

• (a) the merits, as they appear to it, of the referrer's contentions that will be dealt with by an adjudicator or the Tribunal,

• (b) the amount of damages the Board is likely to have to pay to the respondent to the application (on foot of an undertaking required of it by the court to pay such damages) in the event such damages have to be paid, but the Board’s opinion—

• (i) that those contentions of the referrer are unlikely to be accepted by an adjudicator or the Tribunal, or

• (ii) that the amount of those damages is likely to be substantial,

shall, in neither case, and without prejudice to subsection (5) be conclusive in favour of the Board's refusing to accede to the request if, in all the circumstances, the Board considers that it ought to accede to it.

• (5) The fact of the Board's being of the opinion referred to in subsection (4)(ii) shall not be taken into account by it in deciding whether to accede to a request under subsection (3) if the referrer undertakes to defray in whole the amount of damages the Board may become liable to pay in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (4) and the Board is satisfied the referrer has the means to be able to comply with that undertaking.

• (6) On application to the Circuit Court by the Board under this section, the Circuit Court may grant such interim or interlocutory relief in the matter as it thinks appropriate.

190. Section 189: supplemental provisions.

190.—(1) For the purpose of section 189 there is, by virtue of this section, vested in the Circuit Court, with the modifications specified in subsection (2), the jurisdiction vested in that court with respect to the grant, variation and discharge of interim or interlocutory relief in proceedings brought in that court in respect of any matter.

• (2) The modifications mentioned in subsection (1) are that the rules of law (including those of equity) and enactments relating to the foregoing jurisdiction shall be construed and operate so as to enable the Circuit Court to—

• (a) provide that any interlocutory relief granted by it, on foot of an application under section 189, may have effect until the final determination of the dispute concerned under Part 6,

• (b) F486[…]

• (3) Costs the subject of such an award may be taxed in the same manner as costs the subject of an award made by the Circuit Court.

191. Long occupation equity (ability to renounce entitlement to it).

191.—(1) In this section the “Act of 1980” means the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980.

• (2) On and from the relevant date, section 17(1)(a) of the Act of 1980 is amended by inserting the following subparagraph after subparagraph (iiia) (inserted by the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1994):

“(iiib) if section 13(1)(b) applies to the tenement (and the tenement is a dwelling to which the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 applies), the tenant had completed and signed, whether for or without valuable consideration, a renunciation of his or her entitlement to a new tenancy in the tenement and had received independent legal advice in relation to such renunciation, or”.

• (3) On and from the relevant date, section 85 of the Act of 1980 is amended by substituting the following subsection for subsection (2) (inserted by the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1994):

• “(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a renunciation referred to in—

  • (a) subparagraph (iiia) (inserted by section 4 of the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1994), or

  • (b) subparagraph (iiib) (inserted by section 191 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004),

  of section 17(1)(a).”.

192. Long occupation equity (prospective abolition of entitlement to it).

192.—(1) In this section “Act of 1980” has the same meaning as it has in section 191.

• (2) Subject to subsection (3), on and from the fifth anniversary of the relevant date, Part II of the Act of 1980 shall not apply to a dwelling to which this Act applies.

• (3) Subsection (2) does not have effect in relation to a dwelling in respect of which the tenant has served a notice of intention to claim relief under and in accordance with section 20 of the Act of 1980 before the fifth anniversary mentioned in that subsection.

• (4) Subsection (3) is without prejudice to the generality of section 21 of the Interpretation Act 1937.

193. Non-application of certain enactments.

193.—None of the following enactments applies to a dwelling to which this Act applies—

• (a) section 42 of the Landlord and Tenant Law Amendment Act Ireland 1860,

• (b) section 14 of the Conveyancing Act 1881,

• (c) sections 2, 3 and 4 of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act 1892,

• (d) sections 66, 67 and 68 of the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980, and

• (e) section 16 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992.

194. Deemed termination of tenancy to which Part 4 does not apply.

194.—Subsections (1) to (4) of section 37 apply to a tenancy of a dwelling in so far as its operation is not affected by Part 4 or to which that Part does not apply as those subsections apply to a Part 4 tenancy.

195. Proposed overholding under a fixed term tenancy.

195.—(1) In this section “relevant dwelling” means a dwelling, the subject of a tenancy that is for a fixed period of at least 6 months.

• (2) The tenant of a relevant dwelling, if he or she intends to remain (on whatever basis, if any, that is open to him or her to do so) in occupation of the dwelling after the expiry of the period of the tenancy concerned, shall notify the landlord of that intention.

• (3) That notification shall not be made to the landlord—

• (a) any later than 1 month before, nor

• (b) any sooner than 3 months before,

the expiry of the period of that tenancy.

• (4) If a tenant fails to comply with subsection (2) and the landlord suffers loss or damage in consequence of that failure the landlord may make a complaint to the Board under Part 6 that he or she has suffered such loss or damage.

• (5) An adjudicator or the Tribunal, on the hearing of such a complaint, may make a determination, if the adjudicator or the Tribunal considers it proper to do so, that the tenant shall pay to the complainant an amount by way of damages for that loss or damage.

196. Equal Status Act 2000 not prejudiced.

196.—Nothing in this Act—

• (a) authorises conduct prohibited by section 6 of the Equal Status Act 2000, or

• (b) operates to prejudice the powers under Part III of that Act to award redress in the case of such conduct.

197. Amendment of Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1997.

197.—The Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1997 is amended—

• (a) in section 1, by—

• (i) substituting “Housing Acts 1966 to 2002 or Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000” for “Housing Acts 1966 to 1997” in each place where those words occur, and

• (ii) inserting the following definition after the definition of “housing authority”:

“ ‘relevant purchaser’ means—

• (a) a person to whom a housing authority have sold a house under the Housing Acts 1966 to 2002, or

• (b) a person in whom there subsequently becomes vested (whether for valuable consideration or not and including by means of inheritance) the interest of the person referred to in paragraph (a) of this definition in the house referred to in that paragraph;”,

• (b) by substituting the following section for section 3:

“Excluding orders.

3.—(1) A tenant or relevant purchaser may, in respect of a house— (a) let to the tenant by a housing authority, or (b) in respect of which he or she is such a purchaser, apply to the District Court for an order (to be known and referred to in this Act as an ‘excluding order’) against a person including, in the case of an application by a tenant, a joint tenant (referred to in this Act as ‘the respondent’) whom the tenant or relevant purchaser making the application believes to be engaging in anti-social behaviour. (2) A housing authority may, in respect of a house referred to in subsection (1), apply to the District Court for an order (which shall also be known and is in this Act referred to as an ‘excluding order’) against a person, other than the tenant or relevant purchaser of the house, (in this Act also referred to as the ‘respondent’) whom the authority believe to be engaging in anti-social behaviour where the authority— (a) having consulted the tenant or relevant purchaser and the health board in whose functional area the house is situate, believe that the tenant or relevant purchaser— (i) may be deterred or prevented by violence, threat or fear from pursuing an application for an excluding order, or (ii) does not intend, for whatever other reason, to make such an application, and (b) consider that, in the interest of good estate management, it is appropriate, in all the circumstances, to apply for the excluding order. (3) Where the court, on application to it, is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds for believing that the respondent is or has been engaged in anti-social behaviour it may by order— (a) direct the respondent, if residing at the house in respect of which the application was made, to leave that house, and (b) whether the respondent is or is not residing at the house— (i) prohibit the respondent for the period during which the order is in force from entering or being in the vicinity of that house or any other specified house or being in or in the vicinity of any specified area, being an area one or more of the houses in which are under the control and management of a housing authority, or (ii) prohibit the respondent, during the said period, from doing all or any of the things referred to in subparagraph (i) save where specified conditions are complied with. (4) An excluding order may, if the court thinks fit, prohibit the respondent from causing or attempting to cause any intimidation, coercion, harassment or obstruction of, threat to, or interference with the tenant, relevant purchaser or other occupant of any house concerned. (5) Where an excluding order has been made, the tenant, the relevant purchaser or the housing authority, as appropriate, or the respondent may apply to have it varied, and the court upon hearing the application shall make such order as it considers appropriate in the circumstances. (6) An excluding order, whether made by the District Court or by the Circuit Court on appeal from the District Court, shall, subject to subsection (7) and section 9, expire three years after the date of its making or on the expiration of such shorter period as the court may provide for in the order. (7) On or before the expiration of an excluding order to which subsection (6) relates, a further excluding order may be made by the District Court or by the Circuit Court on appeal from the District Court for a period of three years, or such shorter period as the court may provide for in the order, with effect from the date of expiration of the firstmentioned order.”,

• (c) in section 3A (inserted by the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998) by—

• (i) substituting in subsection (2) the following paragraph for paragraph (a):

• “(a) having consulted the authorised person concerned and the health board in whose functional area the site is situate, believe that such authorised person—

  • (i) may be deterred or prevented by violence, threat or fear from pursuing an application for a site excluding order, or

  • (ii) does not intend, for whatever other reason, to make such an application,

  and”,

and

• (ii) substituting in subsection (3) the following paragraph for paragraph (b):

• “(b) whether the respondent is or is not residing at the site—

  • (i) prohibit the respondent for the period during which the order is in force from entering or being in the vicinity of that site or any other specified site or being on or being in or in the vicinity of any specified site, or

  • (ii) prohibit the respondent, during the said period, from doing all or any of the things referred to in subparagraph (i) save where specified conditions are complied with.”,

• (d) by substituting the following sections for section 4:

“Excluding orders.	4.—(1) If, on the making of an application for an excluding order or between the making of the application and its determination, the court is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds for believing that there is an immediate risk of significant harm to the tenant, relevant purchaser or other occupant of the house if the order is not made immediately, the court may by order (to be known and referred to in this Act as an ‘interim excluding order’)— (a) direct the respondent, if residing at the house in respect of which the application was made, to leave that house, and (b) whether the respondent is or is not residing at the house— (i) prohibit the respondent from entering or being in the vicinity of that house or any other specified house or being in or in the vicinity of any specified area, being an area one or more of the houses in which are under the control and management of a housing authority, until further order of the court or until such other time as the court shall specify, or (ii) prohibit the respondent, until such further order or time, from doing all or any of the things referred to in subparagraph (i) save where specified conditions are complied with. (2) Subsections (4) and (5) of section 3 shall apply to an interim excluding order as they apply to an excluding order. (3)(a) An interim excluding order may be made ex parte where, having regard to the circumstances of the particular case, the court considers it necessary or expedient to do so in the interests of justice. (b) The application for such an order shall be grounded on an affidavit or information sworn by the applicant. (c) If an interim excluding order is made ex parte— (i) a note of evidence given by the applicant shall be prepared forthwith— (I) by the judge, (II) by the applicant or the applicant's solicitor and approved by the judge, or (III) as otherwise directed by the judge, and (ii) a copy of the order, affidavit or information and note shall be served on the respondent as soon as practicable. (d) The order shall have effect for a period, not exceeding 8 working days, to be specified in the order, unless, on application by the applicant for the excluding order and on notice to the respondent, the interim excluding order is confirmed within that period by order of the court. (e) The order shall contain a statement of the effect of paragraph (d). (f) In paragraph (d) ‘working days’ means days other than Saturdays, Sundays or public holidays (within the meaning of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997). (4) An interim excluding order shall cease to have effect on the determination by the court of the application for an excluding order.
Provision for avoidance of doubt	4A.—For the avoidance of doubt— (a) no order may be made under section 3 or 4 directing anything to be done, or prohibiting anything from being done, in a housing estate none of the houses in which is under the control and management of a housing authority, (b) a house shall, for the purposes of those sections and paragraph (a), be regarded as being under the control and management of a housing authority despite the fact that the authority has, under section 9 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992, delegated all or one or more of its functions in respect of that house to a designated body.”,

• (e) by substituting the following section for section 9:

“9.—(1) Where an excluding order or interim excluding order has been made, the tenant, the relevant purchaser or the housing authority, as appropriate, or the respondent may apply to the court that made the order to have the order discharged and thereupon the court shall discharge the order if it is of the opinion that, in all the circumstances, it is appropriate to do so.

• (2) For the purposes of this section and section 3(5), an order made by a court on appeal from another court shall be treated as if it had been made by that other court.”,

and

• (f) in section 14, by inserting the following subsections after subsection (3):

• “(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in the enactments specified in subsection (5), a housing authority may refuse to sell or lease a dwelling to a person where the authority considers that the person is or has been engaged in anti-social behaviour or that a sale or lease to that person would not be in the interest of good estate management.

• (5) The enactments mentioned in subsection (4) are:

  • (a) section 90 of the Housing Act 1966;

  • (b) section 3 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992;

  • (c) section 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2002; and

  • (d) Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000.”.

198. Amendment of Housing Act 1966.

198.—The Housing Act 1966 is amended by deleting “except tenants for a month or a less period than a month)” where those words occur in section 79(1) and article 4(b) of the Third Schedule.

199. Amendment of sections 58 and 60 of Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980.

199.—(1) Section 58 of the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980 is amended by inserting in subsection (1)(b), after “section 13(1)(a)”, “or 13(1)(b)”.

• (2) Section 60 of the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980 is amended—

• (a) in subsection (1), by substituting the following definition for the definition of “obsolete area”:

“ ‘integrated area plan’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 7 of the Urban Renewal Act 1998.”,

and

• (b) in subsection (2), by substituting “area to which an integrated area plan relates” for “obsolete area”.

200. Amendment of sections 3 and 20 of Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992.

200.—(1) Section 3(8)(b) of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992 is amended—

• (a) in subparagraph (ii), by substituting “1978;” for “1978.”, and

• (b) by inserting the following subparagraph after subparagraph (ii):

• “(iii) section 60 of the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980.”.

• (2) Section 20(8) of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992 is amended by substituting “by virtue of any requirement on landlords relating to the registration of tenancies” for “under this section”.

201. Amendment of section 34 of Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992.

201.—Section 34 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992 is amended by substituting the following subsection for subsection (1):

• “(1) Any person who, by act or omission, obstructs an authorised person in the lawful exercise of the powers conferred by, or who contravenes a provision of, or a regulation made under, section 17, 18 or 20 shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding €3,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both and if the obstruction or contravention is continued after conviction the person shall be guilty of a further offence on every day on which the obstruction or contravention continues and for each such offence shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding €250.”.

202. Regulations to remove difficulties.

202.—If in any respect any difficulty arises during the period of 3 years after the commencement of this section in bringing any provision of this Act into operation or in relation to the operation of any such provision, the Minister may by regulations do anything that appears to the Minister to be necessary or expedient for the purposes of bringing that provision into operation or securing or facilitating its operation.

F487[SCHEDULE 1] Protection for Sub-Tenancies Created out of Part 4 Tenancies

Section 32.

“head-landlord” means the landlord under the Part 4 tenancy concerned;

“head-tenant” means the tenant under the Part 4 tenancy concerned;

“sub-tenant” means the person in whose favour the sub-tenancy concerned has been created;

“sub-tenancy” means the sub-tenancy referred to in paragraph 2;

“Part 4 tenancy” includes a further Part 4 tenancy and references to a Part 4 tenancy continuing in being shall be construed as including references to—

• (a) if it occurs, the circumstance in which a further Part 4 tenancy comes into being (in respect of the dwelling concerned) after that Part 4 tenancy and continues in being, and

• (b) if it occurs, the circumstance in which a further Part 4 tenancy comes into being (in respect of that dwelling) after the further Part 4 tenancy mentioned in subparagraph (a) and continues in being, and

• (c) if it occurs, each further circumstance of the kind mentioned in subparagraph (b).

• (2) Without prejudice to paragraphs 5 and 6, that protection is that that sub-tenancy shall (if it would not or might not do so otherwise) continue in being for so long as the Part 4 tenancy continues in being unless it is sooner terminated under the provisions of Part 4 as adapted by this Schedule.

• (a) for references in them to a Part 4 tenancy or a tenancy there shall be substituted references to the sub-tenancy,

• (b) for references in them to the landlord there shall be substituted references to the head-tenant,

• (c) for references in them to the tenant there shall be substituted references to the sub-tenant, and

• (d) in paragraph (a) of section 34 for “on one or more of the grounds specified in the Table to this section” there shall be substituted “on one or more of the grounds specified in paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 of the Table to this section”.

• (a) the reference in that paragraph (a) to the tenant shall, for so long as the sub-tenancy continues in being, be construed as a reference to the sub-tenant, and

• (b) a dispute between the head-landlord and the sub-tenant with respect to compliance by the head-landlord with either or both of those obligations may be referred under Part 6 to the Board for resolution.

• (2) For so long as the sub-tenancy continues in being the following obligations of the sub-tenant shall be owed to the head-landlord, namely the obligations under paragraphs (f) and (g) of section 16 and, for the purpose of this paragraph—

• (a) references in those paragraphs to the tenancy shall, for so long as the sub-tenancy continues in being, be construed as references to the sub-tenancy,

• (b) references in those paragraphs to the landlord shall, for so long as the sub-tenancy continues in being, be construed as references to the head-landlord, and

• (c) a dispute between the sub-tenant and the head-landlord with respect to compliance by the sub-tenant with either or both of those obligations may be referred under Part 6 to the Board for resolution.

• (3) Save to the extent provided by the foregoing subparagraphs, nothing in this paragraph affects the obligations owed—

• (a) by the head-landlord to the head-tenant (or the head-tenant to the head-landlord), or

• (b) by the head-tenant to the sub-tenant (or the sub-tenant to the head-tenant),

under the Part 4 tenancy or the sub-tenancy, as appropriate.

• (a) the sub-tenant shall become the tenant of that landlord and the sub-tenancy under which he or she held the dwelling concerned shall be deemed to be converted into that Part 4 tenancy (without prejudice to the notice's effect as against the former head-tenant),

• (b) the terms of that Part 4 tenancy under which he or she holds the dwelling concerned shall be those on which he or she held it under the sub-tenancy (subject to their not being inconsistent with this Act) unless he or she and that landlord agree to a variation of them,

• (c) the period of that Part 4 tenancy's duration shall, subject to Chapter 3 of Part 4, be the same as that which would have been its period of duration if the notice of termination mentioned in this paragraph had not been served.

• (a) the sub-tenant has vacated possession of the dwelling concerned on foot of a notice of termination served under section 34(a) (as adapted by this Schedule),

• (b) that notice of termination cited as the reason for the termination the ground specified in paragraph 4 of the Table to section 34 (as so adapted), and

• (c) the occupation by the person concerned mentioned in that paragraph does not take place within a reasonable time after the service of the notice or, in circumstances where such a requirement arises, the head-tenant does not comply with the requirement to make the offer referred to in that paragraph.

• (2) Where this paragraph applies, the sub-tenant may make a complaint to the Board under Part 6 that, by reason of the matters mentioned in subparagraph (1), he or she has been unjustly deprived of possession of the dwelling concerned by the head-tenant.

• (3) An adjudicator or the Tribunal, on the hearing of such a complaint, may make a determination, if the adjudicator or the Tribunal considers it proper to do so, that the head-tenant shall pay to the complainant an amount by way of damages for that deprivation of possession.

• (4) For the avoidance of doubt—

• (a) this paragraph applies even though the sub-tenant vacated possession of the dwelling only after a dispute in relation to the validity of the notice of termination was finally determined under Part 6 (but in such a case subparagraph (1) has effect as if the clause set out in the Table to this paragraph were substituted for clause (c) of that subparagraph), and

• (b) this paragraph is without prejudice to the sub-tenant's right to put in issue, in a dispute in relation to the validity of the notice of termination referred to the Board under Part 6, the bona fides of the intention of the head-tenant to do or, as appropriate, permit to be done the thing mentioned in the notice.

TABLE

(c) the occupation by the person concerned mentioned in that paragraph does not take place within a reasonable time after the dispute in relation to the validity of the notice is finally determined under Part 6 or, in circumstances where such a requirement arises, the head-tenant does not comply with the requirement to make the offer referred to in that paragraph.

F488[SCHEDULE 2

Section 148R

Improper conduct in relation to a landlord means—

• (a) the commission by the landlord of a contravention of F489[subsection (1)(i) or (6) of section 12,] F490[subsection (4) or (5B) of section 19], subsection (1) of section 134 or subsection (1) of section 139,

• F491[(aa) the setting of a rent pursuant to a review of the rent under a tenancy by serving notice of the rent on the tenant other than in accordance with the condition specified in subsection (2) of section 22.]

• (b) the seeking by the landlord to rely on subsection (5) of section 19 in respect of a dwelling that does not comply with the requirements of that subsection,

• F492[(ba) F493[the seeking or requiring by the landlord (within the meaning of section 19B) of] a payment to him or her of an amount or amounts in contravention of section 19B.]

• F494[(bb) the requesting or requiring by the landlord (within the meaning of section 19C) of a person to enter into a lease or tenancy agreement in relation to a dwelling referred to in subsection (1A) of section 3 the duration of which is a period of more than 41 weeks in contravention of section 19C,]

• (c) the citing by a landlord in a notice of termination of a reason for the termination of the tenancy concerned that is, and that he or she knows to be, false or misleading in a material respect,

• (d) the failure by a landlord, who has served a notice of termination that cites the ground specified in paragraph 3 of the Table to section 34 as a reason for the termination of the tenancy concerned, to make an offer referred to in paragraph (aa) of subsection (8) of section 35 in circumstances where the conditions referred to in the said paragraph (aa) are satisfied,

• (e) the failure by a landlord, who has served a notice of termination that cites the ground specified in paragraph 4 of the Table to section 34 as a reason for the termination of the tenancy concerned, to make an offer referred to in subparagraph (b) of that paragraph in circumstances where the conditions referred to in that subparagraph are satisfied,

• (f) the failure by a landlord, who has served a notice of termination that cites the ground specified in paragraph 5 of the Table to section 34 as a reason for the termination of the tenancy concerned, to make an offer referred to in subparagraph (b) of that paragraph in circumstances where the conditions referred to in that subparagraph are satisfied, or

• (g) the failure by a landlord, who has served a notice of termination that cites the ground specified in paragraph 6 of the Table to section 34 as a reason for the termination of the tenancy concerned, to make an offer referred to in subparagraph (b) of that paragraph in circumstances where the conditions referred to in that subparagraph are satisfied.]

F495[SCHEDULE 3 Provisions applicable to Oral Hearings conducted pursuant to section 148S or 148X Section 148S or 148X]

F496[PART 1 Oral Hearing conducted by authorised officer pursuant to section 148S(15)

F497[7. The oral hearing shall be conducted in public unless the authorised officer determines, in accordance with rules made under section 148AF, that due to the existence of special circumstances it, or part of it, should be conducted otherwise than in public.]

F498[7A. Where an oral hearing or part of it is conducted otherwise than in public, a person shall not knowingly or recklessly publish the name, address, contact details or other personal data of a party to the oral hearing.

7B. A person who contravenes paragraph 7A shall be guilty of an offence.

7C. Criminal proceedings for an offence referred to in paragraph 7B shall not lie against a member of the staff of the Board or an authorised officer in respect of anything done in good faith by the member of the staff or authorised officer in the course of the performance or purported performance of a function under this Act.]

F499[PART 2 Oral Hearing conducted by decision maker pursuant to section 148X(6) or (7)

F500[7. The oral hearing shall be conducted in public unless the decision maker determines, in accordance with rules made under section 148AF, that due to the existence of special circumstances it, or part of it, should be conducted otherwise than in public.]

F501[7A. Where an oral hearing or part of it is conducted otherwise than in public, a person shall not knowingly or recklessly publish the name, address, contact details or other personal data of a party to the oral hearing.

7B. A person who contravenes paragraph 7A shall be guilty of an offence.

7C. Criminal proceedings for an offence referred to in paragraph 7B shall not lie against a member of the staff of the Board or the decision maker in respect of anything done in good faith by the member of the staff or decision maker in the course of the performance or purported performance of a function under this Act.]

Footnotes