Information

Sometimes in criminal prosecutions heard in lower courts in Ireland, the judge may order the defendant to place a donation in the Court Poor Box in lieu of conviction. In other words, instead of being convicted and facing imprisonment or a statutory fine, the judge can order that the defendant donate a sum to a charity nominated by the judge. This sum of money is then lodged by the defendant with the court and paid over by the Fines Office of the Court to the charity in question. According to the Courts Service, 928,000 euro was raised by the Court Poor Box in 2004. A further 1.12 million euro was distributed from the Court Poor Box to various organisations throughout the country.

There is no apparent law in place in Ireland that gives the judge this discretion. The use of the Court Poor Box, however, is a process that has evolved over the years. It appears to stem from the judge's common law jurisdiction to exercise his or her discretion in imposing penalties and/or other conditions. In particular, this process often occurs in the lower courts (i.e., the District Court). It is likely that legislation to replace the Court Poor Box with a reparation fund is now likely to occur.

On 20 September 2005 the Law Reform Commission published their Report on The Court Poor Box: Probation of Offenders (pdf). This Report follows on from the 2004 Consultation published by the Law Reform Commission entitled Consultation Paper on the Court Poor Box (pdf). The 2004 Consultation Paper provisionally recommended that the Court Poor Box should be reformed and replaced with a statutory system, based on the positive elements of the current regime. The 2005 Report comes to the same conclusion, but with some significant extra recommendations.

Until new legislation is introduced however, the following information describes the current situation with regard to the Court Poor Box in Ireland.

The most common reason for making a decision such as this is that, in the opinion of the judge, while the prosecution has proven its case, it is not appropriate to enter a conviction. For example, the judge may anticipate that the defendant will not commit any other offence.

For example, on the one hand, it could be argued that the prospect of appearing in court is a significant deterrent from crime for some citizens. The fact that details of their personal lives and activities may become public knowledge can sometimes be enough to deter them from committing a crime again. In addition, having a conviction registered against you can significantly affect your life (i.e., employment prospects, career, business and social relationships, etc.). For this reason, where the court feels that the citizen will not re-offend, the judge can choose to impose a donation to the Court Poor Box.

On the other hand, however, concerns have been expressed in Ireland as to the need to ensure equal treatment for offenders from different economic backgrounds. There is also a significant question as to the lack of accountability regarding the use of funds. For example, some people feel that having a Court Poor Box is a way out of conviction for some citizens who can afford to pay the fine. Other individuals who cannot afford the fine may have no option but to have their conviction registered against them. There are also concerns that donations to the Court Poor Box deprives the Irish Government of fines that should in ordinary circumstances be imposed.