The Hallagan Case: Striking the Ballance between Practioners' and Patients' Rights

Abstract

This essay examines the recent decision of MacKenzie J in Hallagan v Medical Council of NZ (Hallagan). The controversial effect of this decision is that medical practitioners may conscientiously object to making referrals in respect of abortion cases. Patients’ healthcare rights, which include the right to access abortion services, are therefore shadowed by the practitioners’ rights to freedom of conscience, protected under s 13 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 (BORA).