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23 1927

JURIES ACT, 1927

PART I.

Qualification and Liability for Service as Juror.

Jury districts.

1. —(1) Every county borough shall be a jury district for the purposes of this Act.

(2) Every county shall be a jury district for the purposes of this Act save during such time as an order under this section dividing such county into more than one jury district is in force.

(3) The Minister may by order from time to time as and when he shall think fit divide any county into two or more jury districts, and while any such order is in force each of the jury districts delimited thereby shall be a jury district for the purposes of this Act.

(4) The Minister may at any time, as and when he shall think fit, by order revoke or vary any order made under the foregoing sub-section.

(5) An order made under either of the foregoing sub-sections may be expressed to operate as from any date subsequent to the date of the order named therein for the purpose and whenever any such date is so named the order shall come into force on the date so named.

Minimum rating qualification.

2. —(1) The Minister shall by order prescribe for every jury district the rateable value of land which is to be the minimum rating qualification for jurors in that jury district and may by any such order prescribe different rateable values in respect of different classes of land.

(2) The Minister may from time to time as and when he thinks fit by order vary the rateable value prescribed by him under this section in respect of land or any class or classes of land in any jury district.

(3) The rateable value or several rateable values for the time being prescribed under this section in respect of any jury district shall be the minimum rating qualification for jurors in that jury district.

(4) Whenever a county is by order made under this Act divided into two or more jury districts the rateable value or several rateable values which immediately before the making of such order was or were the minimum rating qualification for jurors in the jury district co-terminous with such county shall, until otherwise provided by order made under this section, be the minimum rating qualification for jurors in every of the jury districts into which such county is so divided.

Qualification and liability for jury service.

3. —(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, every citizen of the age of twenty-one years or upwards and under the age of sixty-five years who, either in his own name or in a tradename and whether alone or jointly with any other person or persons or as a member of a firm or co-partnership, is rated for the relief of the poor in respect of land in a jury district shall, if the total rateable value of all the land in respect of which he is so rated in such jury district equals or exceeds the minimum rating qualification for such jury district, be qualified and liable to serve as a juror for the trial of all or any issues which are for the time being triable with a jury drawn wholly or partly from such jury district, unless he is for the time being disqualified for or exempt from serving as a juror.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this section, every male citizen of the age of twenty-one years or upwards and under the age of sixty-five years who is not qualified and liable to serve as a juror by virtue of the foregoing sub-section and whose wife is rated for the relief of the poor in respect of land in a jury district shall, if the total rateable value of all the land in respect of which his wife is so rated in such jury district equals or exceeds the minimum rating qualification for such jury district, be qualified and liable to serve as a juror for the trial of all or any issues triable with a jury drawn wholly or partly from such jury district, unless he is for the time being disqualified for or exempt from serving as a juror or he proves to the satisfaction of the registration officer that he never had any interest in such land and did not directly or indirectly provide any of the purchase money thereof and that he has not a separate income, earned or unearned, sufficient for his own maintenance.

(3) A person who is qualified and liable to serve as a juror in respect of two or more jury districts shall be entitled, on application to the registration officer or officers concerned, to be exempted from his liability to serve as a juror in respect of all such jury districts save one thereof and such one shall be, if such person is registered as a Dáil elector in any one of such jury districts, the jury district in which he is so registered and, if he is not registered as a Dáil elector in any of such jury districts, such one of such jury districts as he shall select.

(4) A person shall not be qualified or liable to serve as a juror in respect of a jury district unless he is entered as a Dáil or a local government elector in the register of electors for such jury district.

Disqualification for jury service.

4. —Any person who has been or shall be convicted of treason or treason felony or of any felony or of perjury shall, unless he has or shall have obtained a free pardon therefor, be absolutely disqualified from serving as a juror.

Exemption from jury service.

5. —The persons specified in the First Schedule to this Act shall be absolutely freed and exempted from serving as jurors and all other exemptions from serving as a juror subsisting immediately before the passing of this Act shall cease immediately upon such passing.