Judgment reserved over Leaving Cert notes

A five-judge Supreme Court has reserved judgment on an appeal by a woman who alleges that, as a student with dyslexia, she was discriminated against because special explanatory notes were attached to her Leaving Certificate. The notes stated she was not assessed on spelling and grammatical elements of language subjects.

Among the issues raised by Kim Cahill’s case is whether the education minister comes under the scope of the Equal Status Act in relation to the provision of education services in the State.

Ms Cahill, prior to sitting the Leaving Certificate in 2001, asked for and obtained an exemption from assessment in relation to spelling and grammatical elements of language subjects. Her Leaving Certificate stated that she received those exemptions.