Details of the expenses paid to individual judges are to be made public for the first time following a decision by the Information Commissioner.
Peter Tyndall found the Courts Service was not justified in withholding the names of individual judges when releasing details of their 2012 expenses under the Freedom of Information Acts.
“The public interest in ensuring accountability for the use of public funds outweighs any right of privacy which judges might enjoy in relation to details of their expenses claims,” Mr Tyndall said.
He added expectations contained in submissions that “the security of the State would be adversely affected” if the names were released were “not reasonable”.
And concerns about judges’ personal safety were “speculative in nature” and “not a type for which real and substantial grounds exist”.
“It is not appropriate for a public body to refuse a request for records . . . on the basis of the remote possibility of a particular harm arising,” Mr Tyndall said.
Raised concerns
The Courts Service and the
Garda Commissioner
had objected to the release of the names and the Association of Judges of Ireland had raised concerns about judges’ personal security.
It also said it was difficult to see what public interest would be served by disclosing the names.
The Irish Times applied through the Freedom of Information process to the Court Service in early 2013 for details of expenses claimed by each judge of the Supreme Court, High Court, Circuit Court and District Court for the year 2012.
The request was partially granted, with tables of expenses provided, but without the names of individual judges.
That decision was appealed and an internal review upheld it.
The Irish Times then applied, in May 2013, to the Office of the Information Commissioner for a review of that decision.
In his review, Mr Tyndall said his office wrote to 174 judges outlining its preliminary findings, and received submissions from 29 judges, as well as a letter from the judges association, representing over 90 per cent of judges in the State.
No view
Twelve of the judges who responded said their views were represented by the Courts Service and the judges association, three had no view about the release of names, two had no objection, and one had no objection unless gardaí were concerned about the release.
One retired judge had no personal concerns but expressed concern that it might prejudice sitting judges.
The Courts Service made two submissions and the president of the High Court Mr Justice s Nicholas Kearns forwarded a letter from the Garda Commissioner in support of withholding individual judges’ names, Mr Tyndall said.
Those affected by the decision have eight weeks to appeal it to the High Court.
If there is no appeal, the information originally requested by The Irish Times will be granted.
