The Act marked the fusion of the administration of common law and equity in Ireland, although not a merger of the jurisdictions themselves. Prior to the Act coming into force a litigant had to sue in equity in the Court of Chancery and at common law in the common law courts of the Common Pleas, the Exchequer, and the Queen's Bench. Mirroring earlier legislation applying to England and Wales, the Act merged these four courts to become a single High Court of Justice in Ireland; the old courts continued as divisions of the new court. Amending legislation later abolished all but the King's Bench Division and Chancery Division of the High Court.
The Act also created a new Court of Appeal in Ireland.
Partition and subsequent developments
The "Supreme Court of Judicature in Ireland" that was created by the 1877 Act was abolished by the Government of Ireland Act 1920, s. 38;[4] in its place were established a separate Supreme Court of Judicature for each of Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland, together with an overarching "High Court of Appeal for Ireland" with appellate jurisdiction for the whole of Ireland. The two new Supreme Courts of Judicature were constituted on a similar basis to the court they replaced, with both being made up of a High Court of Justice and a Court of Appeal (ss. 39, 40).
The Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland) 1877 has not been repealed in the Republic of Ireland and thus remains part of its law; the Act was expressly preserved by the Statute Law Revision Act 2007.
Pulling, Alexander (1904). "Supreme Court (Ireland)". The statutory rules and orders revised, being the statutory rules and orders (other than those of a local, personal, or temporary character) in force on December 31, 1903. Vol. 13 (2nd ed.). London: H.M.S.O.
^The short title of the Act as given by s. 1 was "Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland), 1877"; however, the Act is often cited instead as the "Supreme Court of Judicature (Ireland) Act 1877".
William Dwyer Ferguson and George Napier Ferguson. A Treatise on the Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland) 1877. Hodges, Foster and Figgis. Dublin. 1878. Google Books. Internet Archive.
James Moody Lowry. The Supreme Court of Judicature (Ireland) Act, 1877. W King. Upper Ormond Quay, Dublin. 1878. Reviewed at "Reviews" (1878) 12 Irish Law Times and Solicitors' Journal 62 (2 February 1878).
John Harvey Hogan. A Summary of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland) 1877. Hendrick & Co. Clare Street, Dublin. 1878. Reviewed at "Reviews" (1878) 12 Irish Law Times and Solicitors' Journal 125 (9 March 1878).
William Dillon. The Supreme Court of Judicature (Ireland) Act, 1877. E Ponsonby. Dublin. 1879. Google Books.
The Supreme Court of Judicature (Ireland) Act, 1877 (40° & 41° Vic., Cap 57). John Falconer. Upper Sackville Street, Dublin. 1879. Google Books.
Luke Sweetman Eiffe assisted by A Houston and J O Wylie. The Judicature Acts (Ireland), 1877 and 1878 and Orders, Rules and Forms thereunder, copiously annotated. E Ponsonby. Grafton Street, Dublin. Stevens and Sons. Chancery Lane, London. 1881. Google Books. Catalogue.