Learner drivers in Co Laois who are charged for driving without L-plates or without a qualified driver present are having their cases thrown out of court by a district judge who says existing legislation does not make such acts specific offences.
According to solicitor Philip Meagher, who recently represented a learner driver at Portarlington District Court, Judge Gerard Haughton "surprised everyone in the court" when he called a halt to a case against a provisional licence holder who had been charged for failing to display L-plates and also for not being accompanied by a qualified driver while she was driving.
"The judge explained to the court why he felt the article was improperly drafted," said Meagher.
He then struck out the charges. The article the judge was referring to, and under which provisional licence holders are charged, is Article 20 of the Road Traffic (Licensing of Drivers) Regulations, 1999, which deals with provisional licences and the rules governing the use of such licences by learner drivers.
According to the judge, Article 20 is drafted in such a way that it does not make either of the charges brought against the provisional licence holder offences, although he did concede that such acts render a provisional licence invalid and that this therefore could have insurance consequences.
As a result, he dismissed the case in question and is now dismissing other similar cases.
"In the way the judge dealt with the case, it was obvious he had interpreted this article before in this way," said Meagher.
Despite the cases being thrown out of court, the Garda has confirmed it will continue with its current policy of charging provisional licence holders who do not display L-plates or who drive unaccompanied until they have obtained legal advice on the judge's interpretation of Article 20.
The Department of Transport, which is responsible for drafting road traffic legislation, declined to comment on the judge's decision but it is clearly surprised by his interpretation.
When drafting the 2002 Road Traffic Act, the then minister for Transport, Seamus Brennan, even included making unaccompanied driving by provisional licence holders a penalty point offence. If the judge's interpretation is adopted by other district court judges it could result in the Minister of Transport being forced to redraft the legislation.
According to court reports, the judge had clearly prepared for the case in advance of the hearing and, in court, quoted from the relevant legislation before giving his interpretation of it.
However, Article 20 appears clear on the rules governing provisional licence holders' legal obligations regarding the display of L-plates and unaccompanied driving.