The High Court has declared that no valid driving-licence charge subsisted against Ronan Corrigan after a District Court judge reinstated it during a hearing in Dún Laoghaire. The declaration followed a judicial review of the decision to reverse an earlier spoken decision to dismiss the charge and adjourn it for a fresh hearing.
Mr Justice Barry O’Donnell ruled that the District Judge had jurisdiction, in principle, to alter a spoken order before it became the final record of the court. But he found that the jurisdiction was exercised unfairly in this case because the reason given for reinstating the charge was not sufficiently connected to a proper purpose.
The District Court hearing on 9 February 2022 concerned two charges: driving without a licence, contrary to section 38(1) of the Road Traffic Act 1961, and driving without insurance, contrary to section 56. Corrigan pleaded not guilty to both.
A Garda told the District Court that he had stopped Corrigan driving in Dún Laoghaire on 26 January 2021. He said Corrigan had no licence with him, undertook to produce his licence and insurance documents at Ballyfermot Garda Station, but did not do so. The Garda also relied on an email said to be from the Road Safety Authority concerning a driving disqualification.
After the Garda was cross-examined, Corrigan’s counsel argued there was no case to answer, saying the RSA email was inadmissible hearsay and the evidence was insufficient. The District Judge accepted the application on the driving-licence charge, while finding there was a case to answer on the insurance charge. When Corrigan later said he had been insured but did not have the documents with him, the judge adjourned that charge to allow him to retrieve them. At the prosecutor’s request, the judge also reinstated the driving-licence charge and adjourned both matters for a new hearing.
The respondents argued in the High Court that the District Judge could change the spoken decision while the matter remained “in the breast of the court”. They also submitted that evidence from the Garda was sufficient to engage a statutory presumption under the Road Traffic Act. Mr Justice O’Donnell said that alleged error was not raised as a reason for reinstatement in the District Court, and could not retrospectively justify the decision.
The High Court found that the driving-licence charge had been dealt with on its merits, while the insurance charge had not reached a final decision. Allowing time to produce insurance documents did not, by itself, explain why the concluded driving-licence charge should be reopened so the prosecution could obtain further evidence from the RSA.
The judge did not make a certiorari order because no formal District Court order appeared to have been drawn up. Instead, he proposed and granted a declaration that no valid section 38 charge subsisted under charge sheet 218980099. His provisional view was that Corrigan should recover costs from the second respondent. A final hearing on the proposed orders was listed for 27 October 2023.