Abortion

The UK government has taken further legislative steps to ensure that abortion services are commissioned in Northern Ireland. The Department of Health and the Northern Ireland Executive were last summer given a 31 March 2022 deadline to ensure access to abortion services, which they have missed.

Legislation creating protest-free buffer zones around abortion clinics in Northern Ireland has been referred to the UK Supreme Court to determine whether it is compatible with European human rights laws. The Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Bill was approved by MLAs shortly before the Assembly

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has launched an investigation into the leaking of a draft opinion overturning the landmark 1973 case of Roe v Wade, which is expected to significantly narrow access to abortion in the United States. The court yesterday confirmed that the document

A leaked draft judgment has shown that the US Supreme Court may overturn the landmark 1973 case of Roe v Wade, which guaranteed access to abortions. The opinion, written by Republican-appointed judge, Justice Samuel Alito, was published by Politico in what is an unprecedented leak from the court.

A written statement issued yesterday from the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland sets out that the UK government is preparing regulations to directly commission abortion services in Northern Ireland if progress is not made directly following the Assembly elections in May. This follows a previou

Colombia's top court has ruled that abortion during the first 24 weeks of a pregnancy is not a crime. The landmark ruling was approved by the Latin American country's Constitutional Court by 5-4 and has been welcomed by human rights campaigners.

Northern Ireland’s High Court has dismissed two applications for judicial review challenging The Abortion (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2021. The court found that the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement had not impacted human rights laws involving abortion on the grounds of severe foetal impairment, a

Marie O'Shea BL has been appointed to lead the second phase of the independent review of Ireland's abortion laws. Section 7 of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 provides for a review of the legislation no later than three years from commencement.

The Northern Ireland Assembly has narrowly rejected a bill which would have restricted access to abortion in the case of several foetal impairment. The Severe Fetal Impairment Abortion (Amendment) Bill, sponsored by DUP MLA Christopher Stalford, was defeated by 45-42 yesterday.

An independent review of Ireland's abortion laws has begun with the launch of a public consultation. The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy Act) 2018, introduced after the referendum on repealing the Eighth Amendment, specifically provides for a review of the operation of the Act within

A pregnant woman in Poland has died from septic shock which doctors allegedly did not treat properly out of concern they would fall foul of the country's strict anti-abortion laws – in a case with parallels to the death of Savita Halappanavar in Ireland in 2012. Polish lawyer Jolanta Budzowska

Anti-abortion protesters could be fined or jailed for harassing women outside hospitals and clinics, under a proposed law, The Times reports. Paul Gavan, the Sinn Féin senator, introduced the safe access zones bill in the Seanad yesterday. It would mandate a 100m buffer zone around relevant p

The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland failed to comply with his statutory duties to "expeditiously" provide women in Northern Ireland with access to high-quality abortion and post-abortion services for over a year, the High Court has ruled. In a case brought by the Northern Ireland Human Right

A high-profile legal challenge to the liberalisation of Northern Ireland's abortion laws, spearheaded by former Attorney General John Larkin QC, has begun in the High Court. Mr Larkin is acting on behalf of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) in an application for judicial revie

Abortion will be legalised in San Marino after more than three-quarters of voters in the small European republic backed the move in a referendum yesterday. At least 95 per cent of people living in San Marino, one of Europe's oldest sovereign states, profess the Catholic faith and around half of thos