The Supreme Court allowed the State’s appeal in a dispute over how twins born through a surrogacy arrangement should be registered, and quashed the High Court orders that their genetic mother be recorded as their mother on their birth certificates.
The judgment, delivered by Chief Justice Denham on 7 November 2014, concerned twins identified as M.R. and D.R. Their genetic father and genetic mother provided the sperm and eggs used in IVF. Their mother’s sister carried the pregnancy and gave birth. The judgment records that the adults had agreed the twins would be raised by their genetic parents, and that they were being raised by them.
After the birth, the gestational mother and genetic father were registered as the parents. A request to correct the registration and record the genetic mother was refused. The High Court later declared that she was the twins’ mother and entitled to have her maternity recorded on their birth certificates. The State appealed those declarations.
The Supreme Court held that the Constitution did not provide a definitive general definition of “mother”. It also rejected the State’s argument that the maxim *mater semper certa est*—that the mother is always certain—settled the case as an irrebuttable rule of Irish common law. The Chief Justice said the maxim had recognised the factual situation before assisted reproduction made it possible for the genetic and gestational mothers to be different people.
But the court did not declare the genetic mother to be the legal mother, or direct that either woman be registered. It concluded that neither the Civil Registration Act 2004 nor the Status of Children Act 1987, nor other Irish legislation then in force, addressed the legal issues arising from surrogacy. The court said the matter involved complex questions of public policy for the Oireachtas and could not be resolved by the court legislating in the case.
The operative result was to allow the appeal and quash the High Court orders. The judgment identified a gap in the law, including in relation to children’s rights, and said legislation should address it. It did not determine how the twins’ birth registration should ultimately be changed.