Landmark ruling in transgender privacy case

In a landmark ruling Judge Liam McKechnie has found that Dr Lydia Foy, a transgendered person, has had her privacy breached by the lack of legislation allowing her to change her identity on her birth certificate.

Judge McKechnie pointed to legislation provisions in other EU countries that allow for a change of identity on official documents and that the lack of such provisions in Ireland was counter to Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights.

Judge McKechnie also ruled that an order stating that Dr Foy's privacy has been breached must be placed before the Houses of the Oireachtas within 21 days of the wording of that statement being finalised.

It is anticipated that this will lead to debate and possible legislation change concerning the privacy of transgendered people.