The Gender Recognition Act 2015 was signed into law by President Higgins on 22 July 2015. The legislation comes as a result of an 18 year legal battle initiated by Dr Lydia Foy, a transgender woman who sought to have her female gender recognised on her birth certificate
Dr Foy, represented by FLAC, began her legal battle for recognition with High Court proceedings in 1997. The case was eventually settled when the Irish Government made a commitment to introduce Gender Recognition legislation and to progress it through the Oireachtas as a matter of priority. The settlement was given effect in December 2014 when the Government published the Gender Recognition Bill 2014.
The Bill completed its journey through the Oireachtas on 15 July 2015 when it was passed by the Seanad. Of the major changes made to the bill during its passage through the Oireachtas, the removal of the requirement that a Trans person undergo medical certification was most significant.
The passage of this law comes eight years after the High Court decision that the failure to recognize transgender persons in Ireland was in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and 22 years after Dr Lydia Foy first requested a new birth certificate for her female gender. Currently, Ireland is only the fourth country in the world to not require medical certification and to specifically introduce legislation based on self-determination. With the passage of this law, Trans people over the age of 18 are able to self-declare their gender by way of a statutory declaration.
The legislation was welcomed by the Transgender Equality Network Ireland. "This is an exciting moment in the history of trans rights," said TENI Chief Executive Broden Giambrone. "The Gender Recognition Act is now law and trans people will now be able to be legally recognised in their true gender."
Click here to read more about Dr Foy’s case.
Click here to read TENI’s press release.
Click here to read TENI’s other press release.
Click here to read FLAC’s press release.
Click here to read more in a Human Rights in Ireland blog piece.