Legislative Programme
Seanad Éireann — 2023-06-21
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Joe O'Brien (GP), Dublin Fingal

From the recommendations made by the working group, based on the submissions made by key stakeholders, it is clear that the introduction of the form of registration of wills would be counterproductive and would create more difficulties for individuals than it would seek to resolve. The Bar of Ireland has pointed out that data from the Probate Office indicated that as few as 100 out of 15,000 wills processed involved missing wills and that in almost every case, the experience was that the High Court would admit proof of a will where a copy was produced. The Bar of Ireland's submission concluded that it is only in a tiny minority of the 100 or so missing wills that it would not be possible to obtain a grant of probate for want of evidence. While I appreciate the positive intention behind the draft legislation, it is considered that on balance, any benefits are far outweighed by the potential disadvantages and it is felt that the Bill, in its current form, should not proceed.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2023-06-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:52:02+00:00
Sitting date: 2023-06-21