John Diver, whose conviction for the murder of his wife was quashed yesterday, was remanded in custody pending a retrial or an application for bail.
Any attempts at a retrial are likely to be opposed by his lawyers on the grounds of possible prejudice arising from media coverage of his conviction.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Justice said it could not comment on the case, given that a retrial had been ordered. However, she said more than 96 per cent of interviews in custody were now recorded due to the roll-out of audio-visual technology between 2001 and 2004.
She said it was at the discretion of the interviewee whether an interview would be recorded. "It would not be a breach of regulations if there was no recording because an interviewee did not consent to one."
A spokesman said the Garda Commissioner would study the judgment before making any comment. Aisling Reidy, director of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, said while she had not time to fully examine the ruling, it did raise "yet more questions about the manner in which statements are taken in custody, and the safety of those statements".
Reiterating the need for solicitors to have a right to be present at interviews, as is the case in the UK, she said there was particular concern over the issue in light of proposals in the Criminal Justice Bill that would make a defendant's statements admissible as evidence even if that defendant was not in attendance in court.