The Rules of the Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) 2021

Made: 17th May 2021

Coming into operation in accordance with Rule 1

The Northern Ireland Court of Judicature Rules Committee[^f00001] makes the following Rules in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 55 and 55A of the Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978[^f00002].

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1

• (1) These Rules shall be cited as the Rules of the Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) 2021.

• (2) These Rules shall come into operation on the twenty-first day after the date upon which this instrument is laid before the Northern Ireland Assembly.

• (3) In these Rules a reference to an Order, rule, Appendix or Form is a reference to that Order, rule, Appendix or Form so numbered in the Rules of the Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland) 1980[^f00003].

Amendments to the Rules of the Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland) 1980

2

The Rules of the Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland) 1980 are amended as follows.

3

In the following Orders, for “circuit registrar” in each place it occurs substitute “district judge”—

• (a) Order 58; and

• (b) Order 97.

4

In Order 97—

• (1) In rule 1(1)—

• (a) after the definition of “Master”, insert—

• “online portal” means the online portal established by the Department of Justice for the making of an online application for a grant;

Signed

Declan Morgan — Bernard McCloskey — Peter Campbell — Dermot Fee — Emma Hunt — John J M Coyle — Dated 26th April 2021

In exercise of the powers conferred by section 55(A)(3) of the Judicature (Northern Ireland) Act 1978, I allow these Rules.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Justice on 17th May 2021

Naomi R. Long — Minister of Justice

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Rules)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Rules amend the Rules of the Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland) 1980 (S.R. 1980 No. 346) to—

• replace references to ‘circuit registrar’ with ‘district judge’;

• amend Order 97 to permit the online lodgement of applications for grant of probate, applications for grant of administration and caveats;

• amend Order 97 to provide that applications for grant of probate and applications for grant of administration shall be supported by a statement of truth signed by the applicant;

• amend Order 97 to update obsolete statutory references; and

• amend Order 97 and Form 3 to replace references to ‘Inland Revenue’ with ‘HM Revenue and Customs’.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: The Northern Ireland Supreme Court Rules Committee was renamed the Northern Ireland Court of Judicature Rules Committee in accordance with section 59(3) of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c.4).

[^f00002]: 1978 c.23; to which the most recent relevant amendments were made by paragraphs 29 and 30 of Schedule 5 to the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c.4); paragraph 6(e) of Schedule 17, and paragraph 15 of Schedule 18 to the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (Devolution of Policing and Justice Functions) Order 2010 (S.I. 2010 No. 976); and paragraph 1 of the Schedule to the Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 (c.13).

[^f00003]: S.R. 1980 No. 346; The Rules of the Supreme Court (Northern Ireland) 1980 were renamed in accordance with paragraph 3 of Schedule 11 to the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c.4). The most recent relevant amendments were made by S.R. 2019 No. 237.

[^f00004]: S.I. 1994 No. 1899 (N.I. 13); to which there have been no recent relevant amendments.