How to make a constitutional challenge

I presume you mean challenging a law on the grounds it is unconstitutional?. You would have to take a case to the High Court. You will have to prove that you have sufficient interest in the point being raised, ie, that the legislation is impacting you and also that you have grounds for your case. Decision can be appealed to the Supreme Court.

I'd expect this would not be cheap so you would need good independent legal advice, not the notions of pressure groups or other such like that have sprouted up in recent years
 
Can the challenge be brought from the district court as one cannot easily get to the high court or can the case be referred by the judge to high court and then onto Supreme Court. Is the challenge at a judges discretion?
 
thedaddyman said:
I presume you mean challenging a law on the grounds it is unconstitutional?. You would have to take a case to the High Court. You will have to prove that you have sufficient interest in the point being raised, ie, that the legislation is impacting you and also that you have grounds for your case. Decision can be appealed to the Supreme Court.

I'd expect this would not be cheap so you would need good independent legal advice, not the notions of pressure groups or other such like that have sprouted up in recent years
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Out of interest - as I have not seen it happen yet - will the Court of Appeal have jurisdiction to decide a constitutional issue on appeal from the High Court. If yes, that would be another layer of costs.
 
milamber said:
Can the challenge be brought from the district court as one cannot easily get to the high court or can the case be referred by the judge to high court and then onto Supreme Court. Is the challenge at a judges discretion?
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Basically, it is as thedaddyman says.

Do not confuse this with the case stated procedure. This allows a Justice of the District Court to refer a legal issue to the High Court for adjudication. When the High Court determines the issue the matter is referred back to the District Court for final disposal. Have a look at this part of the District Court Rules for an idea of what is possible in relation to the case stated system - http://www.courts.ie/rules.nsf/0c60...6fb5059f29a8709d80256d2b0046a082?OpenDocument
 
DirectDevil said:
Out of interest - as I have not seen it happen yet - will the Court of Appeal have jurisdiction to decide a constitutional issue on appeal from the High Court. If yes, that would be another layer of costs.
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I have checked this subsequently. The Court of Appeal does seem to have jurisdiction to hear an appeal from the High Court on constitutional issues. Therefore, this would be the next port of call if there was an appeal.
 
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