The right to choose to have an abortion is implicit in the rights already guaranteed by the Constitution, according to a lecturer in law at the University of Limerick.
Ms Anne Marlborough, who is also a barrister, is among the 2,000 people who have made submissions to the Interdepartmental Working Party on Abortion, which is due to report shortly.
"The rights which would indicate that there ought to be an individual right to choose are the rights of equality, privacy, bodily integrity, self-determination and physical liberty," she said in her submission.
"There is also a right to life protection by the Constitution, in addition to the protection for unborn life in Article 40.3.3. In the absence of Article 40.3.3, it is clear that there would still remain in existence a measure of protection for unborn life, as was manifest in dicta in cases such as Mc Gee and G v An Bord Uchtala."
Referring to the right to equality, she said: "Restrictive abortion laws are questionable because they criminalise access to medical procedures which only women need, while not subjecting men to any sanction for procedures which are necessary for the preservation of their health."
In her covering letter, she says she is in favour of abortion on de m and urges the repeal of Article 40.3.3 of the Constitution. She acknowledges, however, that this position would probably not win majority public support.
It is not desirable "from the perspective of constitutional purity" to continue to amend the Constitution in an ad-hoc manner, she says.
She advocates the enactment of legislation within the terms of Article 40.3.3 in line with the decision in the X case. This should make it possible for a doctor to establish that there exists a threat to the life of the mother which entitles her to a termination of her pregnancy, which should be available in this State.