Carrickmacross Courthouse is set to reopen in the coming weeks according to the Justice Minister, Jim O'Callaghan.
The local courthouse has not been used as a venue since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
According to local councillor and Cathaoirleach of the Carrickmacross/Castleblayney Municipal District, PJ O'Hanlon the building has been maintained in good repair over the past five years. The Courts Service and the Judiciary wish to retain Carrickmacross as a court venue and have carried out extensive maintenance works throughout the period of inactivity, including repainting the interior and improving the heating system.
The building is almost ready to be reopened, however, there will be a further deep clean and Courts ICT are carrying out an assessment of the courtroom technology and will upgrade this where necessary.
It is expected that it will be a number of weeks before the building can reopen. According to a statement from the Department of Justice, Carrickmacross Courthouse will certainly be ready for July sittings - or sooner should the Judiciary want to use it before then.
There is no backlog of court business in Carrickmacross. The regular District & Circuit Court sittings for Carrickmacross have taken place at Monaghan since March 2020. Cllr PJ O'Hanlon told Northern Sound last week that he highlighted the issue of the closure with the Justice Minister and he was glad to be informed that it is going to be opened in the coming weeks.
Cllr O'Hanlon says it's great news that the building is going to be reopened for court sittings in the town of Carrickmacross.
