For more than 30 years, legal and medical responses to pregnancy and childbirth were constrained by the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution of Ireland which protected the right to life of the 'unborn' and profoundly limited the pregnant subject's agency and health. Following the repeal of the Eighth Amendment in 2018, the time has come to re-examine all aspects of pregnancy and childbirth from a position which highlights the importance of agency, autonomy and dignity.

ELPIN (the Ethics, Law and Pregnancy in Ireland Network) engaged academics across different disciplines, as well as women’s health/reproductive rights advocates and health professionals, in a range of interactive seminars and workshops during 2020 and 2021. Its broad range of participants explored the complexities of pregnancy and childbirth and provided participants with the skills and knowledge to best address emerging ethical and legal questions.

    Funded by Wellcome Trust.