Norris v. Ireland
Encyclopedia
Norris v. Ireland was a 1988 case decided by the European Court of Human Rights
. The case was brought against the Republic of Ireland
by Senator David Norris, and his Senior Counsel
was fellow member of the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform
, Mary Robinson
, who later became the first female President of Ireland
.
The complaint of Norris was directed against the existence of laws criminalising certain homosexual acts between consenting adult men. The court ruled in favour of Norris, on similar grounds to those of Dudgeon v. United Kingdom
.
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
. The case was brought against the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
by Senator David Norris, and his Senior Counsel
Senior Counsel
The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel is given to a senior barrister or advocate in some countries, typically equivalent to the title "Queen's Counsel" used in Commonwealth Realms...
was fellow member of the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform
Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform
The Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform was an organisation set up to campaign for the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in the 1970s...
, Mary Robinson
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate...
, who later became the first female President of Ireland
President of Ireland
The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...
.
The complaint of Norris was directed against the existence of laws criminalising certain homosexual acts between consenting adult men. The court ruled in favour of Norris, on similar grounds to those of Dudgeon v. United Kingdom
Dudgeon v. United Kingdom
Dudgeon v the United Kingdom was a European Court of Human Rights case, which held that legislation passed in the nineteenth century to criminalise male homosexual acts in England, Wales and Ireland - in 1980, still in force in Northern Ireland - violated the European Convention on Human Rights...
.
See also
- LGBT rights in the Republic of Ireland
- List of LGBT-related European Court of Human Rights cases