Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013

This article is about the 2013 Act. For the 2001 Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill, see Twenty-fifth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2002.

The Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 (Act No.35 of 2013;[1] previously Bill No.66 of 2013[2]) was an Act of the Oireachtas which, until 2018, defined the circumstances and processes within which abortion in Ireland could be legally performed. The act gave effect in statutory law to the terms of the Constitution as interpreted by the Supreme Court in the 1992 judgment in the X Case. That judgment allowed for abortion where pregnancy endangers a woman's life, including through a risk of suicide. The provisions relating to suicide had been the most contentious part of the bill. Having passed both Houses of the Oireachtas in July 2013, it was signed into law on 30 July by Michael D. Higgins, the President of Ireland,[3] and commenced on 1 January 2014.[4][5] The 2013 Act was repealed by the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018, which commenced on 1 January 2019.[6]

  1. ^ "Legislation Signed by President Higgins: 2013". Office of the President. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
  2. ^ "Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013 (Number 66 of 2013)". Bills 1992 - 2013. Oireachtas. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  3. ^ "President Higgins signs abortion bill into law". Irish Independent. 30 July 2013. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  4. ^ "Commencement Order and Regulations for the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013". Department of Health and Children. 20 December 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  5. ^ Brennan, Michael (2 January 2014). "Reilly criticised over abortion guidelines delay". Evening Herald. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
  6. ^ "Abortion — the law". Citizens Information. 24 December 2018. Retrieved 28 December 2018.; Department of Health (21 December 2018). "Tweet 1076101494284390401". Twitter. Retrieved 2 January 2019. Minister for Health @SimonHarrisTD has signed the commencement orders for the Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy. New services will be available from January 1st 2019.