The Civil Reform Bill 2025: Is Commercial Court style efficiency on the horizon for broader civil litigation in Ireland?

Introduction 

The General Scheme of the Civil Reform Bill 2025 (the General Scheme) was published on 6 January 2026. 

The purpose of the proposed legislation is to implement the recommendations set out in the Report on the Review of Administration of Civil Justice in Ireland, which was prepared by a review group chaired by Mr Justice Peter Kelly in October 2020 (the Kelly Report). The recommendations in that report were focused on improving access to justice through streamlined and more cost-efficient court procedures. 

The objectives of the proposed legislation are broadly aligned with the philosophy that underpinned the establishment of the Commercial Court in 2004 – fast, efficient dispute resolution centred on the tenet of procedural discipline. 

We explore some of the key proposals in the General Scheme and whether they are likely to result in Commercial Court style efficiencies in other courts in Ireland. 

Key proposals 

1. Case-Management and timelines

The General Scheme envisages tighter case-management rules with a stricter approach to adjournment applications, word count limits on submissions and a sharper focus on procedural efficiency to facilitate the early identification and resolution of issues. 

The General Scheme also sets out a formula for “deemed discontinuance” in cases that have not been set down for trial and where no steps have been taken for 6 months. This formula allows a party to serve a notice of their intention to lodge an application for deemed discontinuance. If no steps are taken within 28 days of service of that notice, that party may lodge an application for deemed discontinuance with the relevant court office. The proceedings are then deemed to be discontinued from the date that application is lodged. Deemed discontinuance is likely to have a significant impact on civil proceedings and bring certainty for defendants, as proceedings can currently remain in limbo for many years with a defendant not knowing whether a plaintiff has any intention of taking further steps.

2.      Discovery

The General Scheme aims to reduce the delays and costs which can be associated with discovery through the replacement of the traditional discovery regime with a front-loaded “production of documents” procedure. Pursuant to that procedure, parties would produce all documents which

(a)         they intend to rely on at trial,

(b)         are relevant and material to the outcome of the proceedings including documents which the other parties to the proceedings would be reasonably likely to rely on at trial, and

(c)         are necessary for the administration of justice.

The Court may direct the production or exclusion of certain documents either of its own volition or on the application of a party to the proceedings, having regard to several factors including the cost of production and procedural efficiencies. Similar considerations would be applied to non-party discovery.

The parties would be required to produce any additional documents such as expert reports, witness statements or affidavits no later than 28 days prior to the date of any trial.

Any documents which have not been disclosed as part of the regime could not be relied upon at trial. 

3. Judicial review 

The General Scheme proposes significant changes to judicial review procedures, placing them on a codified, statutory footing. In the proposed procedure, the validity of an act of a public body could only be challenged by way of statutory appeal or judicial review, if all the following conditions are met. 

(1) the respondent has acted unlawfully

(2) the applicant has suffered harm or prejudice 

(3) any error of law, or procedural error, was material to the decision

(4) the interests of justice require such a remedy to be granted, taking into account both the interests of the applicant and the public interest 

(5) the granting of the remedy leaves the applicant in a significantly better position

An application for leave to apply for judicial review would continue to be required, other than in exceptional circumstances. Applications would have to be made within 8 weeks of the date on which the circumstances grounding the application arose, or within 16 weeks in exceptional circumstances. The High Court and Circuit Court would have concurrent jurisdiction to hear those applications. 

4. Monetary jurisdictions 

The General Scheme proposes the following changes to monetary jurisdictions. 

• District Court increase from €15,000 to €20,000
• Circuit Court increase from €75,000 to €100,000 for non personal injury claims 
• Circuit Court increase from €60,000 to €100,000 for personal injury claims 

5. Costs 

Under the General Scheme, the Court may impose costs penalties if the damages awarded fall within the monetary jurisdiction of a lower court. 

It is also proposed that where an Order for costs is made against a party, that party will be required to furnish a bill of costs within 3 months of that Order. 

Conclusion 
If enacted in line with the General Scheme, these wide-ranging reforms will significantly alter the Irish civil litigation landscape. The increased monetary jurisdictions are likely to result in reduced legal costs in certain cases with the diversion of low-value disputes into the lower courts. The stricter rules around discovery and case-management, if strictly implemented, could speed up the progression of disputes through the courts system. 

There are certainly elements of the General Scheme which are open to scrutiny, including whether the front-loading of issues could result in increased costs and whether the production of documents regime leaves an opening for dishonest parties to proceedings to withhold documents in the absence of specific, defined initial parameters of discovery. However, the general thrust of the discovery regime is to be welcomed in cases where parties are open and honest regarding the documentation in their power, possession and control, and in those cases, it is likely to have the intended effect of streamlining the discovery process.  

The Kelly Report’s recommendations on case-management and other procedures applied in the Commercial Court as a model for reshaping the approach taken to civil litigation in a broader context is certainly reflected in the General Scheme. If implemented, the proposals are likely to have the effect of rolling out Commercial Court style efficiencies across the civil courts system. This would be greatly welcomed by litigants and could serve to bolster Ireland’s position as an attractive venue for cross border litigation.

For further information on this Bill, please contact Partner Shane Neville or Managing Associate Laura Keane from the Litigation and Regulation Team.