High Court
Step 1 - Serve a Memorandum of Appearance Form
In order to defend a High Court debt claim, you, the respondent, must complete, submit and serve a Memorandum of Appearance form (Form Part 2 No.1). By completing these actions, you are beginning to defend the claim being made against you.
Complete Your Memorandum of Appearance Form
You must first complete your Memorandum of Appearance form. This form must contain the following information (some of which you will find on the Claim Notice (known as a Summary Summons in the High Court) you received):
The Memorandum of Appearance form must contain:
- The High Court record number.
- The person on whose behalf the Memorandum of Appearance is being submitted.
- Details of the parties involved, such as names, address for service, and legal representatives' details (if known).
- Date and signature of you (the respondent) or your solicitor.
Submit Your Memorandum of Appearance Form
Once you have completed this form, you should make two copies of it and submit the original form to the Central Office of the High Court. The Central Office of the High Court is on the ground floor (east wing) of the Four Courts building on Inns Quay, Dublin 7. This is called submitting your form.
The documents can be submitted by post or in-person in the Central Office. The Central Office runs an online appointment booking system for in-person submissions. For more information on booking an appointment, please see the Appointment Booking Service page.
On the day of your appointment, you must first pay the appropriate court fee of €60 before submitting your original Memorandum of Appearance form. This court fee can be paid at the Stamping Office in the Áras Uí Dhálaigh building in the Four Courts complex in Dublin. You can pay this fee by card or cash.
Serve Your Memorandum of Appearance Form
You must also serve a copy of the Memorandum of Appearance form on the claimant or their solicitor within 8 days of receiving the Claim Notice. If you do not serve this form within the 8 days, you must get written permission for late service from the other party before serving them.
For more information on serving and proof of service, please see our Serving and Proof of Service page.
After you have submitted your Memorandum of Appearance, the claimant may apply to the Master/Deputy Master of the High Court for final judgment. Please see step 2 for more information.