Personal Injury

A consultation has been launched on how the discount rate used by the courts to determine the size of personal injury awards should be set. The discount rate, also known as the real rate of return, is currently determined by case law, but the justice minister also has the power under section 24 of t

The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal brought by Dunnes Stores Limited Company over a July 2019 judgment in which Ms Justice Miriam O’Regan awarded the sum of €102,000 and costs to a respondent in respect of injuries sustained in a fall in a Co Cork store. Background

A personal injury lawyer has urged businesses to co-operate with the PSNI and insurance claims investigators amid a reported increase in hit-and-run incidents during the lockdown. Olivia Meehan, legal services director of JMK Solicitors, made the comments in response to reports from auto body repair

Personal injury lawyers and insurers have struck an agreement designed to ease the burden on the Northern Ireland courts during the coronavirus pandemic. The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) and the Association of British Insurers (ABI) have agreed a protocol which includes the freezing

The High Court has ruled against the Health Service Executive and St James’ Hospital Board in their application to set aside the renewal of a Personal Injury Summons granted by Mr Justice Anthony Barr in May 2019. Background

Proposals for a statutory cap on personal injuries payouts have been rejected by the solicitor and barrister professions. The Law Reform Commission last year set out four models for capping personal injury awards.

At least €130,000 has been paid out since 2015 in compensation to people who fell in the Temple Bar area, according to new figures. In response to a Freedom of Information request from the Irish Independent, Dublin City Council said it paid out in relation to 22 claims between 2015 and 2018.

Alison Cassidy, partner at BLM in Belfast, examines proposals to slash the personal injury discount rate in Northern Ireland. The Minister for Justice in Northern Ireland, Naomi Long MLA, has asked officials to undertake a statutory consultation with the Government Actuary and the Department of Fina

A man who sustained injuries when he collided with racehorses being worked in the Curragh has had his personal injuries claim dismissed in the High Court. Finding that the proximate cause of this “unusual, if not unprecedented, accident” was the man’s failure to keep a lookout when

A number of Irish law firms have been approached by a UK-based "claims harvesting" website offering to refer clients for a fee, the Law Society of Ireland has said. The unsolicited introductory email sent by the company offers to refer clients in pursuit of compensation for motor vehicle accidents.

The State has successfully appealed against a finding of liability in a trip and fall case which resulted in an award of over €158,000 in general and special damages. Overturning the High Court’s finding that the State was liable due to movement in concrete slabs which created a trip haza

Kildare solicitor Liam Moloney has been appointed to the executive board of the Pan European Organisation of Personal Injury Lawyers (PEOPIL). Mr Moloney, managing partner at Moloney & Co Solicitors, was elected to serve as the organisation's revitalisation officer for a three-year term.

A girl who initially accepted a €21,000 damages assessment from the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) for injuries sustained in a road traffic accident has been granted an order rejecting this assessment and a declaration that the PIAB can authorise legal proceedings. Finding that the i

Northern Ireland councils have paid out at least £1.3 million in personal injury cases since 2015, according to new figures. A total of £1,350,497 was paid out by six councils who disclosed their pay-outs to the Belfast Telegraph, while the other five councils said they did not have a pr

Mason Hayes & Curran partner Deirdre Munnelly and associate Aisling Pierce examine a recent judgment criticising lawyers who refer their clients for specialist medical evaluation in the absence of a referral from the client’s primary treating doctor. On appeal to the High Court, two person