One hundred and eleven judges were the subject of complaints last year to the Judicial Council but not one complaint was found to be admissible.
The 2024 Judicial Conduct Committee report shows that the 296 complaints received last year represent a 37 per cent increase on the 216 complaints received in 2023.
The report – contained in the council’s 2024 annual report shows one individual made 28 complaints against the judiciary with another individual lodging 15 complaints.
However, the report shows that 237 complaints were determined to be inadmissible and not one complaint was admissible.
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Twenty-seven complaints concluded because the Act ceased to apply, two complaints were withdrawn and another 30 remained for consideration at the end of last year.
Secretary to the Judicial Council, Kevin O’Neill said in the report that “the baseless conclusions that a judge is biased in favour of the opposing parties by reason of not listening to everything which a complainant wishes to say, or because of dissatisfaction with a decision, is regularly raised as a complaint.”
“Many complainants continue to incorrectly perceive this system as an opportunity to express dissatisfaction with the outcome of court cases, whether or not they were actively involved in those cases”.
The report estimates that more than 90 per cent of complaints came from litigants who represented themselves in court proceedings.
Mr O’Neill said: “The prevalence of complaints from unrepresented parties continues to suggest that persons who do not have the benefit of legal advice have greater difficulty understanding the court process and what has occurred and why.”
Having considered more than 500 complaints by the end of 2024, including listening to the audio recording of many hearings, “the conduct of the Irish judiciary is of the highest standard”, Mr O’Neill said.
The report states that “several complainants continue to make inadmissible complaints directed at the same judge. To a large extent, the increase in complaints made compared with 2023 was for this reason.”
Chief Justice and chairperson of the council, Mr Justice Donal O’Donnell said: “A pattern is emerging of a small number of regular complainants generating a large number of the complaints dealt with, and also a significant number of complaints made by individual litigants which are often inadmissible as they are complaints about the outcome of a case rather than the conduct of the judge.”
He said it is important that “ any rush to “judge judges” is well informed and not based on limited understanding or knowledge of what has taken place. ”
