Judicial Education
Judicial education and training in Ireland became mandatory in 1995. Section 19 of the Courts and Court Officers Act, 1995 requires that judges appointed through the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board process, are under an obligation to follow any training which is required by the relevant court president.
The Judicial Council Act 2019 creates an obligation for the Council to provide judicial training. Section 7 of the 2019 Act includes ‘continuing education of judges’ as one of the functions of the Council. The Judicial Studies Committee was created pursuant to section 17 of the Act, ‘to facilitate the continuing education and training of judges with regard to their functions’. The Judicial Studies Committee provides judicial education and training as directed by the Judicial Council.
The Judicial Studies Committee delivers regular judicial training and education programmes, including: Judicial Conduct and Ethics; Avoiding Re-traumatisation; Unconscious Bias and Vulnerable Witnesses; Induction, Mentoring; Assisted Decision-Making and Training of Judicial Trainers.
More information on the Judicial Studies Committee can be found under the following link: https://judicialcouncil.ie/judicial-studies-committee/