ABSTRACT
In March 2018, Ireland became the last country in the European Union to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), 11 years after it was first signed in 2007. The CRPD is the most important human rights treaty for persons with disabilities, as it requires all states parties to remove obstacles within society so that persons with disabilities can participate fully as equal citizens within society. In its relatively short lifetime, the CRPD has already effected meaningful change worldwide, especially in the areas of legal capacity, personal decision making and independent living arrangements. However, the implications and obligations under the CRPD have not yet been fully realised with respect to the broad area of the criminal justice process. This chapter considers how the CRPD can be used as a blueprint to guide criminal justice reform in Ireland.
