Professor Penney Lewis:

I think that is correct. As that is not the way in which Dutch or Belgium law changed on assisted dying, we do not have that kind of a background of a rights-based form of legal change. The question is whether a state could legalise assisted dying and whether that would be compatible with both Articles 2 and 8. The answer would appear to be "yes". Certainly, the dissenters in the most recent UK Supreme Court case of Nicklinson v. Ministry of Justice thought that it was possible to have such a regime and have that be consistent with the European convention. Ireland has the responsibility to reach that decision. The European convention, at least as it has been interpreted, does not mandate that Irish law be changed but neither does it prevent Ireland from so doing in a safe and well-regulated manner.