The High Court has ordered Eugenie Houston to obtain leave before issuing future proceedings against judges and registrars, the State and certain officeholders, the Courts Service and its employees, or members of the legal profession.
Mr Justice Mark Sanfey made the prospective litigation restriction order, commonly called an Isaac Wunder order, in a judgment delivered on 5 February 2025. The application was brought by Ireland and the Attorney General. The first named defendant, Leonie Reynolds, took no part in the application.
The order requires Ms Houston to seek leave from the President of the High Court or a judge nominated by the President before bringing proceedings against the categories specified in the court’s order. It does not apply to existing proceedings or prevent Ms Houston from defending proceedings. The judge described it as a screening process: if a proposed claim is shown to be bona fide, leave can be granted.
The court considered Ms Houston’s litigation history, including earlier cases that had been dismissed and appeals that had failed, as well as proceedings she had issued against judges, the Courts Service, State bodies and legal practitioners. The judge said the evidence showed repeated attempts to relitigate issues already determined, allegations he found to lack a foundation, and repeated recusal applications. He concluded there was a risk of further abusive litigation without a restriction.
The order followed a separate decision in February 2024 dismissing Ms Houston’s underlying proceedings as an abuse of process. The judge said the applicants’ requested restriction was proportionate and granted it for the five categories listed in parts (a) to (e) of their schedule. The broader provision in part (f), which would have allowed the court to add other categories, was not included in the order.
The judge’s preliminary view was that the applicants should receive their costs, to be adjudicated if the parties could not agree. He allowed 10 days for submissions on whether any further or different order should be made before finalising the orders.