Civil Reform Bill 2025: An Overhaul Of Civil Litigation Procedure

On 6 January 2026, the Minister for Justice published the General Scheme of a Civil Reform Bill 2025 (General Scheme), which, if enacted, will deliver significant, wide-ranging reforms of Ireland's civil justice system. According to the Minister, these proposals are likely to lead to the more orderly conduct of litigation, costs savings, and more efficient use of court resources.

Below, we explore the key elements of the proposed changes and some of the practical implications for litigants and practitioners.

Discovery Reforms

One of the most significant proposed reforms relates to Discovery. The General Scheme seeks to implement the key recommendations of a 2020 Review of the Administration of Civil Justice, also known as the Kelly Report. This report criticised Ireland's existing discovery regime as “completely unsuited” to an era of mass electronic data.

Under the General Scheme, parties will be required to produce all documents they intend to rely on at trial within 28 days of the service of the “claim form”. A respondent must provide its documents within 42 days of the service of a defence. Longer periods can be agreed by the parties or directed by the court. No later than 28 days prior to the trial, the parties must produce any additional documents that have become relevant in the course of the litigation.

This represents a significant departure from the current system, where parties are only required to provide discovery after the pleadings have closed. Further, under the General Scheme, all documents that are relevant and material, and are to be relied upon at trial, will have to be discovered, whereas the current process requires parties to produce documents that come within categories relevant and necessary to the proceedings, as agreed by the parties or ordered by the court,

The General Scheme still allows parties to apply to court to direct the production of documents within the possession of the other side that are relevant to the proceedings and necessary for the administration of justice, but it sets out a list of factors which the court must have regard to when considering such an application, including the cost, administrative burden and the materiality of the documents to the outcome.

Judicial Review

The General Scheme proposes to place Judicial Reviews on a statutory basis, with a requirement that the court considers the public interest when determining whether to grant relief.

While the General Scheme specifically references the court's discretion to grant a remedy on foot of a Judicial Review application, it goes on to say that the court shall not grant such relief unless satisfied that a number of explicit conditions have been met, including that the applicant has suffered harm or prejudice, that any error by the respondent was material to the decision being challenged, that the granting of the relief will provide a significant benefit to the applicant and is in the interests of justice, taking into account the interests of the applicant and the public interest.

Case Management

Case Conduct Principles

The General Scheme sets out formal case management principles. These include the following;

• Issues of law and fact should, at an early stage and to the extent practicable, be identified, defined, narrowed and prioritised or sequenced;
• Proceedings should be conducted in a manner which is just, expeditious and likely to minimise the costs of those proceedings; and
• Parties should use alternative dispute resolution procedures, where appropriate, to settle the whole or part of the proceedings.

Adjournments

A presumption against granting adjournments will also be introduced, with a mandatory list of factors for a court to consider when determining an application to adjourn, including the conduct of the parties. Where the court considers that the case conduct principles, listed above, have not been adhered to, but grants an adjournment, it shall impose a penalty on the party in breach.

Pre-Action Protocols

Pre-action protocols, currently limited to clinical negligence cases, will be extended to other areas of litigation, which will be determined by way of regulations to be enacted by the Minister. In making any such regulations, the Minister must consider the desirability of inter alia facilitating the early identification of the issues in dispute, promoting communication between the parties and encouraging early settlement and the use of alternative dispute resolution. 

Presumed Discontinuance

Where an action has not been set down for trial and no steps have been taken to progress the proceedings for six months, a party may serve notice of their intention to lodge an application for deemed discontinuance. If no steps are taken within the following 28 days, an application for deemed discontinuance may be lodged in the appropriate court office. Presuming the application is valid, the court office will issue a notification confirming the discontinuance of the proceedings to all parties. Any application to set this aside must be made within 3 months.

Lis Pendens

A lis pendens is a burden that can be registered against land which is the subject of ongoing litigation and it has the effect of encumbering the lands in question. Under the new rules, the term of a lis pendens will be limited to 28 days, unless the party who registered it applies to court to have the period extended. This provision, coupled with the above-mentioned reforms on deemed discontinuance of proceedings, will help to ensure that inactive cases do not linger indefinitely on the court lists and will reduce the risk of a party seeking to improperly use the lis pendens process.

Other Provisions

Personal Injury Claims

Plaintiffs in personal injury cases will face new obligations to distinguish between pre-existing injuries and those claimed in the proceedings by way of amendment to Section 10(2) of the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004.

Legal Cost

Parties who are awarded their costs will be subject to a time limit of 3 months from the conclusion of proceedings to provide a bill of costs, failing which interest otherwise due under the Courts and Court Officers Act 2002 will not be payable.

Monetary Jurisdiction

Proposals include increasing the Circuit Court monetary limit from €75,000 to €100,000, while the District Court's limit will increase from €15,000 to €20,000.

Enforcement of Judgments

Reforms to sheriff processes are intended to make enforcement more efficient and less burdensome for judgment creditors.

Implications of the Reforms

The reforms proposed in the General Scheme represent a comprehensive effort to update civil litigation in Ireland. Undoubtedly, the bill, if introduced in its current form, will significantly impact how litigation is carried out in Ireland.

While certain areas such as judicial review and sheriff procedures are subject to specific reforms, the General Scheme will also result in changes to how all litigation is progressed. Tighter discovery rules and enhanced case management protocols will affect litigation strategy and preparation both prior to and post the initiation of proceedings. Presumed discontinuance provisions and changes to the granting of adjournments aim to ensure that proceedings are progressed efficiently. Jurisdictional changes will affect where claims are brought and the associated costs.

Given its significance, the journey of this bill through the legislative process will be keenly followed to see if issues in respect of the workability of these proposals are debated and if any significant changes to the proposals will be adopted before enactment.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.