Disability rights campaigner Mrs Kathy Sinnott has had her application to be elected to Seanad Éireann ratified.
Ms Sinnott (51) was nominated by four Independent TDs to the labour panel but there was speculation she may not be deemed eligile to run in that category. However the adjudicating High Court judge accepted her claim that she was representing the State's carers who were entitled to recognition as unpaid workers.
The Cork mother-of-nine, was recently defeated by Fianna Fáil TD Mr John Dennehy, by just six votes for a general election seat in the Cork South Central constituency.
Ms Sinnott also won a landmark case against the state for the State's failure to provide an education for her autistic son.
The judgment had huge implications as it stated that the right to education was not age-related. Ms Sinnott and her son also won damages of around £250,000.
However, the judgment was overturned by the Supreme Court.
Ms Sinnott was one of the founders of the Association for the Severely and Profoundly Mentally Handicapped. She was also instrumental in the establishment of the Cork-based Hope Project in 1996. The project assists parents of children with disabilities by sharing information about services.
Ms Sinnott was born in Chicago, Illinois, but moved to Ireland in 1971. She lives in Ballinhassig, Co Cork.