Enforcement Agencies

Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement

16 Parnell Square, Dublin 1. LoCall: 1890 315 015*

The mission of the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE) is to improve the compliance environment for corporate activity in the Irish economy by:

• encouraging adherence to the requirements of the Companies Acts and
• bringing to account those who disregard the law.

The impact of the ODCE's work will have positive economic and social benefits in reducing business and personal risks in the economy. In doing so, the ODCE will be primarily serving the public interest, rather than acting to remedy individual grievances in the company law area.

Contact the ODCE for information on: company investigations, compliance with company law, suspected breaches of company legislation.

Companies Registration Office

Parnell House, 14 Parnell Square, Dublin 1. LoCall: 1890 220 226*

The Companies Registration Office (CRO) is the authority for the incorporation of new companies and registration of business names in the Republic of Ireland. The Office is also responsible for the receipt and registration of post incorporation documents, enforcement of the filing requirements of companies, and provision of information to the public.

Contact the CRO for information on: private companies, public companies, European economic interest groupings.

Registrar of Friendly Societies

Parnell House, 14 Parnell Square, Dublin 1. LoCall: 1890 220 226*

The Office of the Registrar of Friendly Societies is a statutory independent office responsible for the registration and general regulation of friendly societies, trade unions and industrial and provident societies (co-operatives). The Office is also responsible for the registration, regulation and financial supervision of credit unions.

Contact the Registrar of Friendly Societies for information on: industrial and provident societies, friendly societies, charities, and trade unions.

Patents Office

Government Buildings, Hebron Road, Kilkenny. LoCall: 1890 220 223*

The Patents Office mission is to provide an efficient and effective system of industrial property protection that will encourage technological progress and promote enterprise".

This is to be achieved through the protection of industrial property rights in the fields of patents, trademarks and designs, and the dissemination of relevant information in conjunction with each of these activities.

Contact the Patents Office for information on patents, trademarks and industrial design.

National Consumer Agency

4 Harcourt Road, Dublin 2. LoCall 1890 432 432*

The National Consumer Agency (NCA) was established under the Consumer Protection Act 2007 with effect from the 1^st May 2007. The new Agency’s specific mandate includes advocacy, research, information, enforcement, education and awareness. The Agency enforces a wide range of consumer protection laws, including laws on deceptive trading practices (including unfair, misleading and aggressive), consumer credit, package travel, unfair contract terms, timeshare, consumer safety (mandatory standards), food labelling, textile labelling, unit pricing and price displays.

National Employment Rights Authority

O’Brien Road, Carlow.

The mission of the National Employment Rights Authority (NERA) is to achieve a national culture of employments rights compliance through the provision of information, supported by enforcement.

NERA has three main service areas:

• Information Services Lo Call 1890 80 80 90*
• Inspection Lo Call 1890 22 01 00*
• Enforcement and Prosecution Lo Call 1890 22 02 00*

* Note that the rates charged for the use of 1890 (Lo Call) numbers may vary among different service providers.