The Irish Law Reform Commission was established under section 3(1) of the Law Reform Commission Act 1975.

Activities

The Commission an independent body which examines areas of the law and proposes reforms or changes. Most of their recommendations are adopted through legislation.

According to its website, 70% of its proposals have resulted in the enactment of legislation effecting reforms. The website says that the Commission is currently engaged in its Fifth Programme of Law Reform including the Statute Law Revision Programme.^[1]

Functions

Section 4(1) of the Law Reform Commission Act 1975 provides:

The Commission shall keep the law under review and in accordance with the provisions of this Act shall undertake examinations and conduct research with a view to reforming the law and formulate proposals for law reform.

By section 1,

• "the law" means the law of the State (including any private or public international law) and includes matters of legal practice or procedure, and "law" must be construed accordingly
• "reform" includes, in relation to the law or a branch of the law, its development, its codification (including in particular its simplification and modernisation) and the revision and consolidation of statute law, and kindred words must be construed accordingly.