A number of organs taken from the body of a deceased woman and retained by St James's Hospital, Dublin, have been handed over to her nephew, a court was told yesterday.
Judge Alison Lindsay in the Circuit Civil Court heard that following a postmortem examination on the body of Julia (Sheila) Cooke earlier this year certain organs had been retained.
Damian Sheridan, counsel for Co Wicklow solicitor Richard Cooke, a nephew of the late Ms Cooke, said the hospital had initially refused and neglected to return the organs to the family.
He said Mr Cooke was also the late Ms Cooke's executor and he had brought court proceedings seeking the return of the organs.
Mr Sheridan said this was the last application Mr Cooke had ever wanted to have to make but because of the "past history" and late response of the hospital he would like an opportunity to have DNA tests carried out on the organs to ensure they were the right ones.
Judge Lindsay, refusing an adjournment until late October, said a solicitor for the hospital had complied with a court injunction directing the hospital to bring the missing organs to court and hand them over.
The judge said she was satisfied on the word of an officer of the court that the organs in question were the proper ones. Should it transpire they were not then a further application could be brought at a later stage.
Judge Lindsay was told that Mr Cooke had been told by letter that the organs could be collected at the hospital from March 1st last. On July 12th the hospital had been given seven days to produce the organs or face court proceedings.
The hospital had only a few days to investigate the matter and had complied to the best of its ability with the earlier court order, the court was told.
Mr Sheridan said the late Ms Cooke's nephew, a solicitor of Wexford Road, Arklow, Co Wicklow, had never received the letter allegedly informing him the organs could be collected from March 1st last.
Judge Lindsay struck out the motion under which the application for return of the organs had been brought before the court.