Ireland

Common lawUnitary parliamentary republicReviewed· 2026-08-02

Capital: Dublin
Population: 5,300,000
Languages: Irish, English
Currency: EUR

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Ireland · Rights

Rights in Ireland

What the atlas records on rights in Ireland, checked against the primary sources cited below.

Rights

Bunreacht na hÉireann, amendable only by referendum

Reviewed· 2026-08-02

Ireland's 1937 Constitution establishes a parliamentary republic and can be changed only by the people at referendum. The superior courts enforce it, striking down repugnant legislation.

Key rules

Every constitutional amendment requires a national referendum.
The High Court and Supreme Court can invalidate laws that conflict with the Constitution.
The Constitution protects both enumerated and judicially recognised unenumerated personal rights.

Governing law

Bunreacht na hÉireann (Constitution of Ireland) (1937)

In practice

Major social changes — divorce, marriage equality and abortion — each required a referendum rather than ordinary legislation, a defining feature of Irish constitutional life.

Sources

Rights

Constitutional rights plus the ECHR Act 2003 and IHREC

Reviewed· 2026-08-02

Rights are protected both by the Constitution and, at sub-constitutional level, by the European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission promotes and enforces them.

Key rules

The ECHR Act 2003 requires courts and public bodies to act compatibly with the Convention.
Courts may issue a declaration of incompatibility, leaving repeal to the Oireachtas.
IHREC can take and support strategic rights and equality litigation.

Governing law

European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003
Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014

In practice

Because the Constitution offers stronger remedies than the ECHR Act, litigants usually plead constitutional rights first and the Convention in the alternative.

Sources

IHREC

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