Judicial Review secures child’s assessment of needs against the HSE in Ireland

Assessment of Needs judicial review Ireland

Judicial review proceedings brought by Coleman Legal compelled the HSE to carry out an Assessment of Needs for a child in Ireland, following a delay of more than two years. The family had exhausted the formal complaints process under the Disability Act 2005 without result. Coleman Legal brought proceedings in the High Court, and the matter was resolved within 12 months of first instruction, with the HSE making a partial admission and the child’s assessment being completed promptly.

Client background

Our client was a mother in her mid-twenties who had been seeking an Assessment of Needs for her child under the Disability Act 2005. She had followed the correct steps from the outset, submitting a formal application to the HSE and, when the assessment was not completed within the statutory period, making a complaint through the HSE’s Assessment of Needs complaints process.

Despite this, the prescribed timeframes within that complaints process expired without any assessment being carried out. Her child was left without a diagnosis and without the service statement that should have identified the supports the child required.

Delays in the Assessment of Needs process

Under the Disability Act 2005, the HSE is required to carry out an Assessment of Needs for a child with a disability and to produce an assessment report within a specified timeframe. The report sets out the child’s health and education needs and the services required to meet them.

Our client’s child had been waiting for more than two years without the assessment being completed. A formal complaint was made through the AON complaints mechanism, but the prescribed timeframes within that process also expired without resolution. As the Assessment of Needs judicial review route became necessary, Coleman Legal was instructed to pursue the matter through the courts.

Judicial review proceedings against the HSE

Coleman Legal reviewed the complete history of our client’s application, including the original assessment request, the HSE’s correspondence, and the complaints documentation showing that the prescribed timeframes had elapsed without action.

Judicial review proceedings were brought in the High Court under Order 84 of the Rules of the Superior Courts, seeking an order of mandamus compelling the HSE to carry out the assessment without further delay. The application set out in detail the HSE’s statutory obligations under the Disability Act 2005 and its failure to comply with those obligations within the required timeframes.

Outcome

The proceedings were resolved within 12 months of the first instruction. The HSE made a partial admission, and the child’s Assessment of Needs was carried out promptly following the commencement of proceedings. The assessment produced the diagnosis and service statement the family had been seeking for over two years, identifying the supports the child required. No monetary award was sought in these proceedings as the Assessment of Needs judicial review was focused on securing the child’s statutory entitlement under the Disability Act 2005.

Steven Whelan of Coleman Legal led this case from initial instruction, reviewing the full history of the family’s dealings with the HSE and identifying the basis for judicial review. He guided our client through a complex and unfamiliar legal process, ensuring she understood each step and what the proceedings were seeking to achieve.

As Steven has noted, “Helping our client secure their Assessment of Need promptly brought us enormous satisfaction. It reflects not only the importance of early intervention and timely support for families, but also underpins Coleman Legal’s growing expertise in navigating complex AON and disability law matters.”