Save the Dates! Status Check: Seminar Series on 20 Years of the Equal Status Acts beginning Tuesday, 1 June 2021
As the Equal Status Acts enter their third decade in effect in Ireland, FLAC and the Law School, Trinity College Dublin, will hold a series of seminars in which academics, practitioners, policy-makers and activists reflect on the experience, impact and limitations of this legislation to date and explore its future role in Ireland’s equality framework.
The Equal Status Acts prohibit discrimination, harassment and victimisation in the provision of goods, services, education and accommodation. They cover the nine grounds of gender, marital status, family status, age disability, sexual orientation, race, religion, and membership of the Traveller community. The enactment of this legislation represented the fulfilment of a commitment contained in the Good Friday Agreement and placed Ireland at the forefront of Europe in terms of anti-discrimination legislation.
However, in recent years, the number of complaints made under the Equal Status Acts has begun to decline. Questions continue to be raised about the legislation’s compatibility with Ireland’s obligations under international and regional human rights instruments. The dedicated equality bodies which were in place when the legislation was introduced, the Equality Tribunal and the Equality Authority, have been subsumed into the Workplace Relations Commission and the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission respectively. At the same time, we have seen the introduction of a dedicated Public Sector Human Rights and Equality Duty.
The recent commitments by Government - to examine the introduction of a “disadvantaged socio-economic status” ground and to review Ireland’s equality legislation generally - afford another opportunity for Ireland to act as European leaders in promoting equality and combatting discrimination. The seminar series will examine these issues and seek to contribute to the debate about the future of Ireland’s equality law.
The online seminars will take place from 1pm to 2pm each Tuesday throughout June:
Prof. Judy Walsh (UCD), Sinéad Lucey (FLAC Managing Solicitor), Prof. Mark Bell (TCD)(Chair).
Paul McKeon (IHREC and activist), Tamás Kádár (Equinet) and Siobhán Phelan SC (Law Library).
Niall Crowley (former CEO of the Equality Authority); Eilis Barry (FLAC); further speakers to be confirmed
Prof. Sandra Fredman (Oxford); further speakers to be confirmed.
The final line-up and registration details will be made available in the coming days and will be circulated with the next PILA Bulletin.