A new, updated Guide, published today, could help 20,000 Irish families still in mortgage distress, many as a continuing legacy of the crash of 2008.
Your EU Consumer and Human Rights: A Guide for People in Mortgage Distress in Ireland, has been updated and republished to help families in mortgage distress know more about their rights using EU consumer and human rights law. It also provides information on two significant changes in the law which came into effect in Ireland in 2019. These are not being fully utilised by the legal community and the State’s support organisations such as Abhaile and MABS.
The authors of the Guide said the over 20,000 households living with the ongoing stress of mortgage repossession, many for over 12 years now, are often forgotten in the national housing debate.
In Grant v County Laois Registrar in April 2019, Mr. Justice McDermott confirmed that Irish judges and registrars must assess mortgage documents for unfair mortgage terms on their own initiative – or, in other words, to carry out an own motion assessment on the terms of the mortgage in line with EU law.
The Land and Conveyancing Law Reform (Amendment) Act 2019 (in force since August last year) enables courts to consider whether making a possession order would be ‘proportionate” and fully respect the rights of the borrower and those living in the home. It must examine whether the lender has made a statement ot the borrower, setting out the terms in which the borrower could remain in the home. It must also examine any proposal made by the borrower which would allow the household to remain in the home, and can consider any additional matters it considers appropriate.
“By applying these EU laws, in addition to the significant Irish legislative and legal developments, Irish courts and lawyers can really assist their clients and vulnerable defendants,” said Dr. Padraic Kenna, Director of the Centre for Housing Law, Rights and Policy at NUI Galway, and one of the authors of the report.
“This decision, along with other significant legal developments, provide courts and lawyers with the opportunity to really act to protect the interests of ordinary people at risk of losing their homes,” he continued.
Julie Sadlier, a solicitor working with people in mortgage distress for over 10 years, said that Irish consumers, in particular financial consumers, need the protection of EU consumer law.
“The Irish consumer, and particularly the financial consumer, needs the equality of arms of a strong interpretation of the Unfair Contracts Directive and the principle of proportionality underpinned in EU Law,” she said.
The authors also noted that people in mortgage arrears were under huge additional stress as they are most likely to be facing courts as lay litigants. The Irish justice system needs to facilitate and provide in-court supports to assist those who have no legal representation, they said.
The Guide is for information purposes only, it does not provide legal advice, and is not a substitute for consulting a lawyer. It contains practical advice on how to find a solicitor, an outline to the Abhaile Scheme and Personal Insolvency Arrangements, sample template pleadings, and other vital resources for people in mortgage distress and their solicitors.
The Guide has been created as part of the Open Society Foundations’ Abusive Lending Practices Project (ALPP), in conjunction with the Centre for Housing Law, Rights and Policy, NUI Galway and a group of Irish lawyers and advocates.
The Guide is available to download at http://abusivelending.org/page/guide-pleading-templates.