First Representative Action Commenced and Progressing

Legislation enacted in 2023 allowed representative actions to be brought in Ireland. Following the designation of the first qualified entities in the latter half of 2024, the first representative action has now been brought before the courts in Ireland. Our Commercial Disputes team examines these developments.

The Representative Actions for the Protection of the Collective Interests of Consumers Act 2023 was passed to strengthen consumer protection. It allows consumers to seek collective redress or remedy for an alleged infringement of their consumer rights. Although it does not provide for class actions, the legislation does allow for an organisation that has been designated as a “Qualified Entity” to take an action before the High Court. Qualified entities take the action on behalf of a group of consumers whose consumer rights have been breached by unlawful practices by traders. The Act applies to both domestic and cross-border infringements. The Act was commenced by Ministerial order[1] from 30 April 2024. The first, and as yet only, qualified entities were designated in June and October 2024, and July 2025.[2] The first action under the Act has recently been commenced. How it progresses will be keenly watched. The determination of the proceedings will illustrate the extent to which the statutory scheme protects the collective interests of consumers.

Available remedies

The Act empowers the court to impose injunctive measures to stop the unlawful actions and / or redress measures to compensate for the infringements.

Injunctive relief is governed by Section 23 of the Act. It entitles a court to grant an injunction, on an interim or final basis, as appropriate, to cease or prohibit a practice which is deemed or found to constitute an infringement. In making a final order based on a finding, a court may also make a declaration or direct the trader to publish the decision or a corrective statement. However, before seeking a final order, the qualified entity is first required to engage with the trader to seek to resolve the alleged infringement. Section 21 sets out the requirements regarding this engagement. This includes the timing of moving ahead with an injunction application if the matter cannot be resolved. Section 23(7) of the Act provides that a qualified entity can apply for an injunction without having to prove that any consumer actually suffered loss or damage. It also does not need to show the trader acted intentionally or was negligent.

Redress measures are addressed by Section 26(2) of the Act. It says that, while the court still has the discretion to decide on the type of redress, it may order a trader to provide:

• Compensation
• Repair
• Replacement
• Price reduction
• Contact termination, and / or
• Reimbursement of the price paid.

However, a consumer is not entitled to receive compensation more than once arising out of the same cause of action against the same trader and it is not necessary for a customer to bring a separate action to benefit from redress measures.

The proceedings

The first representative action under the Act was commenced on 29 May 2025 by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL). ICCL was granted leave to do so on 26 May 2025. ICCL is legally structured as a company limited by guarantee and is independent of the Government. It is a non-profit organisation established nearly 50 years ago. Its aim is to promote human rights and civil liberties. In modern times, a particular work focus of the ICCL has been defending digital and data rights. It has been active with submissions, publications and litigation in this space.

The current action under the Act brought by ICCL is against Microsoft. The case was admitted to the Commercial List of the High Court on 30 June 2025. In essence, the ICCL claims that Microsoft operates an advertising business, through its "Xandr" platform. Microsoft is alleged to collect and process extensive personal data from users of Microsoft products and services to create detailed user profiles. This practice, it is claimed, allows Microsoft to sell advertising opportunities to individual advertisers for a fee, generating significant revenues for Microsoft. The ICCL seeks declarations and orders directing Microsoft to cease this data processing and/or to adjust its processing as so to comply with GDPR and Irish law.

Microsoft did not formally oppose the entry application, although it sought to explore whether the proper defendant should be Xandr rather than Microsoft. The case was admitted to the Commercial List because it involved commercial issues and would benefit from being actively managed by the court. However, the proceedings were adjourned in the first instance to allow the parties to engage, in particular regarding who the proper defendant should be. Following that adjournment, on the next occasion, it was confirmed that the case was proceeding as originally set out. The court approved a timetable for the exchange of pleadings and the matter is due be heard again in December 2025.

Conclusion

The progression of the litigation, as well as its outcome, will be closely watched in the context of potential future representative actions. The conduct of the litigation, and the directions made to progress it, may serve as a benchmark or blueprint for future representative proceedings. The outcome will be of interest to other trading entities and service providers who may find themselves the subject of representative actions. The case will be of particular interest to technology companies based in Ireland and operating in the EEA.

For more information and expert advice on commercial disputes, contact a member of our Commercial Disputes team.

The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal or other advice.

[1] SI 181/2024 – Representative Actions for the Protection of the Collective Interest of Consumers Act 2023 (Commencement) Order 2024.

[2] Respectively, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, None of Your Business (NOYB) and Digital Rights Ireland.