Statutory Instruments Act, 1947

Printing, notice of making, etc., of statutory instruments to which this Act primarily applies and supplementary provisions.

3.—(1) The following provisions shall apply in respect of every statutory instrument to which this Act primarily applies—

(a) within seven days after the making thereof, a copy thereof shall be sent to each of the following, namely, the National Library of Ireland, the Law Library Four Courts, Dublin, the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland, the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, the Cork Chamber of Commerce, the Limerick Chamber of Commerce, the Waterford Chamber of Commerce and the Galway Chamber of Commerce,

(b) as soon as may be-after it is made, it shall, notwithstanding that it is liable to be annulled, be printed under the superintendence of the Stationery Office,

(c) as soon as may be after it has been printed, notice of the making thereof and of the place where copies thereof may be obtained shall be published in the Iris Oifigiúil,

(d) as on and from the date of the issue of the Iris Oifigiúil containing the said notice, copies of the said statutory instrument shall be kept at the place specified in the said notice and may be obtained there.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) of this section the validity or effect or the coming into operation of any statutory instrument to which this Act primarily applies shall not be affected by any non-compliance with subsection (1) of this section.

(3) Where—

(a) a person (in this subsection referred to as the defendant) is charged with the offence of contravening (whether by act or omission) a provision in a statutory instrument to which this Act primarily applies, and

(b) the prosecutor does not prove that, at the date of the alleged contravention, notice of the making of the said statutory instrument had been published in the Iris Oifigiúil,

the charge shall be dismissed, unless the prosecutor satisfies the Court that at the said date reasonable steps had been taken for the purpose of bringing the purport of the said instrument to the notice of the public or of persons likely to be affected by it or of the defendant.

(4) The production of a copy (purporting to be published by the Stationery Office or to be published by the authority of the Stationery Office) of a statutory instrument to which this Act primarily applies, having printed thereon a statement that notice of the making of the said statutory instrument was published in a particular issue of the Iris Oifigiúil, shall in any proceedings be prima facie evidence that such notice was published in that issue of the Iris Oifigiúil.

(5) Nothing in this section shall be construed as restricting the printing and publication of any statutory instrument which is not a statutory instrument to which this Act primarily applies.