High Court defers judgment on treatment of catastrophically injured boy to hear more evidence

One doctor had told the court the boy’s case was the worst case of dystonia she had seen in nine years of dealing with hundreds of such cases in a busy London hospital.

The mother, who opposes the orders sought, had tears in her eyes and clutched rosary beads as the judge was about to give judgment this afternoon. File picture: iStock

The mother of a catastrophically brain-injured boy wiped away tears when the president of the High Court agreed today to a last-minute deferral of her decision whether to permit a hospital withhold invasive interventions, and effectively administer a palliative care regime, should his condition deteriorate.

The mother, who opposes the orders sought, had tears in her eyes and clutched rosary beads as her counsel Siobhan Phelan SC appealed to Ms Justice Mary Irvine, as the judge was about to give judgment this afternoon.