Tusla plans to call six or seven witnesses to the section 32 inquiry to determine the age of the young person in its careTusla believes a young person in its care, who came to Ireland as an unaccompanied asylum seeker last year, is an adult. Brian Barrington, barrister for the teenager’s court-appointed advocate, said Tusla had carried out an “assessment of eligibility for services” – in effect “an assessment of whether [the young person] is or is not a child”. He said legally the young person remained a minor. “The court will determine if [the person] is a child or an adult. A date for the section 32 inquiry into the young person’s age could be expected to be set on Tuesday, he said.

Source: The Irish Times March 20, 2026 10:31 UTC