In a further attempt to protect victims of unreasonable behaviour, the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2023 has now made stalking a civil wrong which means that a victim can bring an application to the District Court, seeking certain orders preventing this behaviour from continuing.
The previous position was that such behaviour could only be prevented if the DPP brought a criminal prosecution against the alleged wrongdoer i.e. the victim had no control over whether an application to court could be made. A victim can now bring an application to court and can initially be brought on an ex-parte (one party only) if the Applicant can satisfy the court that the alleged behaviour can be reasonably considered to be likely to cause the Applicant a) a fear of violence or b) serious alarm/distress. The Applicant does not have to show that he or she was in a relationship with the offending person.
This is an important piece of legislation which gives welcome protection to victims of unreasonable behaviour including stalking.
For further information in relation to this, or any other matter relating to domestic violence. please do not hesitate to contact Brendan Dillon or Emma Dillon on 01 2960 666.
