The Courts of Justice Act, 1924

Jurisdiction in civil cases.

48.—The Circuit Court shall have and exercise the following jurisdiction in civil cases:—

(i) on consent—jurisdiction without any limit as to amount of claim or value of property involved in the proceedings before the court where all necessary parties sign, before the hearing, the form of consent prescribed by the rules to be made under this Part of this Act; such consent may provide that the decision of the Circuit Court shall be final and conclusive, in which case the decision shall not be appealable;

(ii) in contract and tort (save matrimonial and criminal conversation actions)—jurisdiction when the claim does not exceed £300;

(iii) in title to land and rectification of the register—jurisdiction when the Poor Law Valuation of the property in question does not exceed £60;

(iv) in probate matters and actions, and suits for administration of estates—jurisdiction when the value of the personalty does not exceed £1,000 and the Poor Law Valuation of the land does not exceed £60;

(v) in equity cases (including winding-up of companies)—jurisdiction within the same limits as in the preceding paragraph (iv) and in winding-up cases where the issued capital of the company does not exceed £10,000;

(vi) in bankruptcy—in Local Bankruptcy Courts which may be established under the Local Bankruptcy (Ireland) Act, 1888, for which purpose that Act shall be construed and take effect as if the expressions “Executive Council,” “Order of the Executive Council,” “Minister for Finance,” and “Chief Justice” were respectively substituted for the expressions “Lord Lieutenant,” “Order in Council,” “Treasury” and “Lord Chancellor” wherever those expressions respectively occur in the said Act, and the words “in any circuit” were substituted for the words “in Londonderry, Galway, Waterford, and Limerick, respectively, or in any of those places” where those words occur in section 5 of the said Act;

(vii) in proceedings at the suit of the State or any Minister or Government Department or any officer thereof to recover any sum not exceeding £300 due to or recoverable by or on behalf of the State, whether by way of penalty, debt, or otherwise, and notwithstanding any enactment now in force requiring such sum to be sued for in any other court:

Provided that any party to an action commenced in the Circuit Court and pending therein may at any time apply to the Circuit Judge that the action may be sent forward to the High Court, and thereupon in case the action is one fit to be prosecuted in the High Court and the High Court appears to be the more appropriate tribunal in the circumstances, the Circuit Judge may send forward such action to the High Court upon such terms and subject to such conditions as to costs or otherwise as may appear to be just, and an appeal shall lie from the exercise of the discretion of the Circuit Judge in granting or refusing any such application:

Provided also that a Circuit Judge may on the application of any party or without any such application, if he thinks fit, change the venue for the trial of any action pending before him from any one place of hearing to any other within his circuit and an appeal shall lie under Section 61 of this Act from the exercise of the discretion of the Circuit Judge in making or refusing to make such an order.