Judge not convinced legislators appreciate 'true need for expedition' of surrogacy law

The High Court heard legislation to address legal lacunas arising from surrogacy arrangements was “flagged as necessary” by the Supreme Court in 2009

The judge made the comments at the High Court on Tuesday, when an action brought by Kathy and Brian Egan (pictured) returned for the State’s lawyers to clarify its position regarding the Government’s proposal to introduce legislation in this area. File picture: Collins Courts

A High Court judge has said he is not convinced legislators appreciate the “true need for expedition” when dealing with the introduction of a law to regularise and recognise international surrogacy.

Mr Justice John Jordan said legislation to address legal lacunas arising from surrogacy arrangements was “flagged as necessary” by the Supreme Court as long ago as 2009, and again in 2014 that court said Irish legislation had failed to address deficits.