Four Courts
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The Four Courts () is Ireland's most prominent courts building, located on Inns Quay in
Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
. The Four Courts is the principal seat of the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
, the
Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...
, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit Court. Until 2010 the building also housed the Central Criminal Court; this is now located in the Criminal Courts of Justice building.


Court structure

The original courts building on St Michael's Hill close to Christchurch cathedral housed four superior courts, of Chancery, King's Bench,
Exchequer In the Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil service of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's Exchequer, or just the Exchequer, is the accounting process of central government and the government's ''Transaction account, current account'' (i.e., mon ...
and Common Pleas, giving the building its familiar name. Under the Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland) 1877, these four courts were replaced by two - the
Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...
, presided over by the
Lord Chancellor The Lord Chancellor, formally titled Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The lord chancellor is the minister of justice for England and Wales and the highest-ra ...
, and the
High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...
, headed by the Lord Chief Justice - but the building has retained its historic name. Under the Courts of Justice Act 1924, courts were established for the new
Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...
with the Supreme Court of Justice, presided over by the Chief Justice, replacing the Court of Appeal and a reconstituted
High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...
, presided over by the President of the High Court, continuing the jurisdiction of the old High Court. The
Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland (, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executi ...
in 1937 provided that courts would be established in a manner provided by the Constitution; this did not in fact occur until the implementation of the Courts (Establishment and Constitution) Act 1961. The
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
and High Court (now dropping "of Justice" from their title) established under this act continued the jurisdiction of the courts established under the 1924 Act. A new
Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...
was established in 2014, following a referendum in 2013, largely taking over the
appellate jurisdiction An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appellat ...
of the Supreme Court and the old Court of Criminal Appeal. Its civil division sits in the Four Courts.


History


St Michael's Hill structure

Prior to the construction of the current Four Courts, an original complex existed close to Christ Church Cathedral on what is today St Michael's Hill which was in use as four courts from around 1608 to the opening of the present building around 1796. Even after renovation and reconstruction works by William Robinson in 1695, there were constant complaints about the building's condition and location. Later works were supervised by Thomas Burgh from 1705-06 while Hugh Darley was also recorded as working as a stonecutter on the structure in 1749. The Four Courts Marshalsea was originally also located nearby at that time between Winetavern Street and Fishamble Street.


Gandon's building

160px, Part of the original Gandon-designed interior decoration of the dome, lost in the 1922 destruction Work, based on the design of Thomas Cooley for the Public Records Office of Ireland, began in 1776. After Cooley died in 1784, renowned architect James Gandon was appointed to finish the buildings. It was built between 1786 and 1796, while the finishing touches to the arcades and wings were completed in 1802, The lands were previously used by the King's Inns. and before that a 13th-century Dominican Friary St. Saviour's was located on the site, confiscated following the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII.


Easter Rising

The Four Courts and surrounding areas were held by Commandant Edward Daly's 1st Battalion during the
Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...
in 1916. Some of the most intense fighting of Easter Week took place in the Church Street, North King Street and North Brunswick Street area. At the end of the week, the Four Courts building itself became the headquarters of the 1st Battalion.


Destruction in Civil War

On 14 April 1922, the courts complex was occupied by IRA forces opposed to the
Anglo-Irish Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty (), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain an ...
, with Rory O'Connor acting as their spokesman. On 28 June the new National Army attacked the building to dislodge the "rebels", on the orders of the Minister for Defence Richard Mulcahy, authorised by President of Dáil Éireann Arthur Griffith.'The Republic – the Fight for Irish Independence 1918–1923' Charles Townshend This attack provoked a week of fighting in Dublin. In the process of the bombardment, the historic building was destroyed. The west wing of the building was obliterated in a huge explosion, destroying the Irish
Public Record Office The Public Record Office (abbreviated as PRO, pronounced as three letters and referred to as ''the'' PRO), Chancery Lane in the City of London, was the guardian of the national archives of the United Kingdom from 1838 until 2003, when it was m ...
at the rear of the building. Nearly a thousand years of archives were destroyed by this explosion, the ensuing fire, and the water poured onto the fire. The IRA was accused of mining the records office; however, those present, who included future
Taoiseach The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
Seán Lemass, said that, while they had used the archive as a store of their ammunition, they had not deliberately mined it. They suggest that the explosion was caused by the accidental detonation of their ammunition store during the fighting.


Reopening in 1932

For a decade after the destruction of the Civil War, the courts sat in the old viceregal apartments in
Dublin Castle Dublin Castle () is a major Government of Ireland, Irish government complex, conference centre, and tourist attraction. It is located off Dame Street in central Dublin. It is a former motte-and-bailey castle and was chosen for its position at ...
. In 1932, a rebuilt and remodelled Four Courts was opened. However, much of the decorative interior of the original building had been lost and, in the absence of documentary archives (some of which had been in the Public Records Office and others of which were among the vast amount of legal records lost also), and also because the new state did not have the funds, the highly decorative interior was not replaced.


Further development

The
Office of Public Works The Office of Public Works (OPW) (; legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Government of Ireland, Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of owned and ren ...
added a modern two-storey extension to the roof of the old Public Records Office in the late 1960s. They also built River House on Chancery Street, overlooking the courts.


Criminal courts

Prior to 2010, both civil and criminal trials were heard in the Four Courts, which was also the location of the Court of Criminal Appeal. When the Criminal Courts of Justice building, near the Phoenix Park, opened in January 2010, all criminal trials were transferred there. The Four Courts remain in use for civil matters.


Plans for Supreme Court building

There are plans to relocate the Supreme Court to a new purpose-built building near the Four Courts.


See also

*
Courts of the Republic of Ireland The Courts of Ireland consist of the Supreme Court of Ireland, Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal (Ireland), Court of Appeal, the High Court (Ireland), High Court, the Circuit Court (Ireland), Circuit Court, the District Court (Ireland), Distri ...
* Law of the Republic of Ireland


References


External links


Four Courts web tour

Courts Service of Ireland

The Bar Council

The National Archives of Ireland
{{Judiciary of the Republic of Ireland Buildings and structures in Dublin (city) Courthouses in the Republic of Ireland National supreme court buildings Neoclassical architecture in Ireland Rebuilt buildings and structures Georgian architecture in Dublin (city)