Following the publishing of the report from the Commission of Investigation into the Mother and Baby Homes in January numerous lawsuits have been initiated against the State and the religious orders which ran the homes.

The Commission examined 14 mother and baby homes and four county homes in Ireland which operated between 1922 and 1998. The report found that 9000 children died in the homes.

On March 4th three women who gave birth in a mother and baby home lodged damages claims in the High Court. The women are represented by Coleman Legal. They are claiming damages for personal injury, loss, and damage due to failings by statutory bodies. They further claim that the State failed to uphold their constitutional rights as per Article 40.1, which sets out that all citizens shall be held equal before the law, and Article 41 which ensures protection of the rights of the family.

A further four similar claims were expected to be initiated on March 5th.

 As part of the lawsuits, some of the plaintiffs are requesting access to both transcripts and audio recordings of the interviews they gave to the Commission. They are requesting these as they feel the Commission did not accurately reflect their personal accounts.

It is believed there could be over 100 similar lawsuits filed in the next few weeks. These lawsuits will add to the already mounting pressure on the State to create a redress scheme for the survivors of the homes.