The Supreme Court has declared sections 6 and 7 of the Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act 1937 inconsistent with the Constitution, but suspended the effect of that declaration until 31 May 2025.
The order followed the court’s March 2023 ruling that the law’s restriction of the electorate for six university seats to graduates of Trinity College Dublin and the National University of Ireland was inconsistent with Article 18.4.2° of the Constitution. That provision was added after a 1979 referendum and provided for legislation extending the university franchise beyond those institutions.
The court heard further submissions on how long the declaration should be suspended. Tomás Heneghan, the appellant, sought a suspension until July 2024, with 25 May 2025 as the latest date for the next Seanad election. The State respondents sought a suspension until 30 July 2027, saying more time was needed to devise, enact and implement legislation.
Chief Justice O’Donnell said suspension was justified to guard against a Dáil dissolution and subsequent Seanad election taking place before new legislation could be enacted. Without a suspension, he said, there was a risk that the constitutional arrangements could prevent the election of a constitutionally compliant Oireachtas and leave it unable to legislate.
The court rejected the State’s proposed four-year period. O’Donnell said the time needed depended on the approach chosen by the Oireachtas, which could adopt a range of solutions. Allowing time for the most elaborate option could keep the invalid provisions in effect longer than necessary if a simpler solution were chosen.
The judgment makes clear that the suspension does not delay the Oireachtas’s duty to legislate. O’Donnell said that obligation had applied since the 31 March 2023 judgment and required the Oireachtas to begin the necessary work now. The March ruling did not require extending the franchise to any particular institution or prescribe a specific electoral system.
The order addresses the timing and effect of the invalidity declaration. It does not set out a new franchise or enact replacement legislation; those choices remain for the Oireachtas.