Irish judges considered arguments on Tuesday over whether a brain-dead pregnant woman should be kept on life support to give her 17-week-old fetus a chance at life, a case that has reignited debate over Ireland’s abortion ban.
Five groups of lawyers representing the woman, her fetus, her parents, her partner and the hospital are taking turns presenting their cases to the Dublin high court. A specially convened three-judge panel may issue a ruling later Tuesday that could, in turn, be appealed to the nation’s highest Supreme Court. “Time is of the essence,” the high court president, justice Nicholas Kearns, told the court.
At issue is the Irish Constitution’s requirement that the life of the woman and of the fetus should enjoy equal protection under the law. In the past, Irish hospitals have kept pregnant women on life support even after they suffered irreversible loss of brain function in hopes of saving the fetus. In the two most recently documented cases, in 2001 and 2003, the fetus died in the womb after a week or two.