The Supreme Court refused Linda Farrell leave to appeal directly from the High Court in her symphysiotomy claim, on 12 October 2015.
Ms Farrell, 76, says she underwent an unnecessary symphysiotomy at the Coombe Hospital in 1963.
She was 24 and the procedure took place 12 days before her first child was born.
John Ryan, the defendant, is the hospital's nominee for the proceedings.
Her negligence claim was reduced to one plea: that nothing justified an antenatal symphysiotomy.
The High Court dismissed her claim in May 2015.
It also rejected Mr Ryan's arguments based on the Statute of Limitations and the passage of time.
Ms Farrell asked to skip the Court of Appeal. Mr Ryan did not resist, but gave no reasons for a direct appeal.
She said about 1,500 women had the procedure between 1948 and 1988, making hers a test case.
She also pointed to her age and the time an appeal would take.
The Supreme Court said the decision on whether to hear an appeal is for the Court alone. The parties' agreement is not enough.
It accepted the case matters to Ms Farrell and others with similar claims. It said importance and urgency do not decide which court hears an appeal.
It was not satisfied that exceptional grounds had been shown for a direct appeal.