The State has paid damages and costs awarded to Cork woman Louise O'Keeffe by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

In January the ECHR found the government failed to protect Ms. O'Keeffe from sexual abuse she suffered in school in Cork and ordered the government pay her €30,000 in damages and €85,000 in costs.

Ms. O'Keeffe was abused by principal of Dunderrow National School Leo Hickey in the 1970s. Mr. Hickey was later jailed and also paid Louise damages following a civil action.

In January, the Court found that the Department of Education was liable and had failed to protect her, saying the obligation to protect her "had not been met when the Irish State...continued to entrust the management of the primary education of the vast majority of young Irish children to National Schools, without putting in place any mechanism of effective State control against the risks of such abuse occurring".

The court ruled in her favour by 11 votes to 6.

In a statement this afternoon the Education Minister Ruairi Quinn said damages had been paid to Ms. O'Keeffe.

The Department also said the State Claims Agency is reviewing its day school abuse cases to identify those that come within the parameters of the ECHR judgment.

Minister Quinn will report back when the review is complete.