The Attorney General (AG) has told a Law Society conference on family law that there could be constitutional change to reflect the reality that not all families are founded on marriage.
Rossa Fanning SC (pictured) added, however, that under no circumstances would any potential amendments dilute or diminish the Government’s commitment to the family.
Earlier this year, the Government set out its plans to hold a referendum, or referendums, on gender equality in November this year – potentially including a vote on the constitutional definition of the family in article 41.
The AG was speaking after the Supreme Court yesterday (13 July) adjourned a hearing where a co-habiting parent is challenging the constitutionality of a welfare benefit that applies only to surviving spouses, and not surviving cohabitees.
‘Vast lists’
The AG told the conference at Blackhall Place that the Government was working to secure the resources that would be “vital” for the operation of new dedicated family-law courts.
The Family Courts Bill, which was introduced into the Seanad towards the end of last year, sets up new divisions of the existing courts that will be staffed by specialised judges.
Referring to the “vast lists” facing judges, and the increasing complexity of cases, the AG said that there had to be sufficient numbers of judges to decide these cases.
He said that the Government had already started filling the additional judicial vacancies created by the Courts Act 2023.
Hammond Lane
The AG added that the plan for family courts would be accompanied by an improvement in physical infrastructure, referring to the plan to build a purpose-built complex at Hammond Lane in Dublin.
The Minister for Justice has previously said that she intends the project to be completed by 2026 at the latest.
He told the conference that the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to the Government, which operates under his supervision, was currently working on drafting the Child Care (Amendment) Bill, which updates 1991 legislation, and clarifies how the courts should perform its functions in child-care proceedings.
He added that the Domestic, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Agency Bill, was currently “in advanced stages of drafting”.
This bill will create a new statutory agency dedicated to addressing and reducing the incidence of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. The agency will oversee and support the provision of refuge accommodation for victims of such violence.