DUBLIN, Oct. 21, 2025 — The Irish Government has given the green light to progress the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences, Domestic Violence and International Instruments) Bill 2025, a wide‑ranging package of reforms aimed at tackling domestic abuse, sexual violence, and human trafficking.
Jennie’s Law: A Domestic Violence Register
At the heart of the Bill is “Jennie’s Law”, named in memory of Jennifer Poole, murdered by her ex‑partner in 2021. The law will establish a publicly accessible Domestic Violence Register of Judgements, managed by the Courts Service. It will allow the names of those convicted of serious domestic violence offences against a partner or former partner to be published online, subject to victim consent.
Minister O’Callaghan said the measure would help people “ascertain whether a person has a history of serious domestic violence convictions,” while also honouring the advocacy of Jennifer Poole’s family.
Reforming Consent Laws
The Bill also strengthens the law on sexual consent. Currently, an “honest belief” in consent can be used as a defence in rape cases, even if unreasonable. Under the new provisions, any belief in consent must be objectively reasonable, aligning rape and sexual assault offences under a consistent standard. This change follows recommendations from the Law Reform Commission.
Tackling Human Trafficking and Cross‑Border Crimes
The legislation will transpose EU directives on combating human trafficking and violence against women. It broadens the definition of exploitation to include forced marriage, surrogacy exploitation, and illegal adoption, and criminalises knowingly using services provided by trafficking victims.
In addition, the Bill removes the requirement of dual criminality for certain offences — including rape, female genital mutilation, forced abortion, and forced sterilisation — ensuring Irish citizens can be prosecuted for such crimes committed abroad, even if not illegal in the jurisdiction where they occurred.
Modernising Child Protection Language
The Bill will also replace all references to “child pornography” in Irish law with the term “child sexual abuse material”, reflecting the reality that such material constitutes abuse and exploitation, not pornography.
Next Steps
The General Scheme of the Bill will now proceed to the Oireachtas Justice Committee for pre‑legislative scrutiny. Once reviewed, the Government has pledged to prioritise finalising the legislation.
Summary: The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences, Domestic Violence and International Instruments) Bill 2025 introduces Jennie’s Law, reforms consent standards, strengthens anti‑trafficking measures, and modernises child protection terminology. The reforms mark one of the most significant overhauls of Ireland’s criminal law in recent years, with the aim of providing stronger protections for victims and greater accountability for offenders.
Minister-Jim-OCallaghan-Picture-by-Houses-of-the-Oireachtas
Sources: Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration [gov.ie]; Goss.ie; Extra.ie Goss.ie gov.ie Extra.ie.
