9,000 legal actions pending against the State
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The total cost and number of legal actions against the state is rising relentlessly according to the latest figures from the Comptroller and Auditor General.
The accounts for the State Claims Agency reveal that, at the end of 2016, the estimated cost of outstanding compensation claims against the State had risen to €2.2 billion from €1.8bn the previous year – a rise of 22 per cent.
There were 8,900 legal actions pending against the State at the end of 2016, compared with 6,000 in 2011.
In 2016, the agency paid out €256.2 million in compensation awards and legal costs – an increase of 20 per cent on the €219.3m bill for the previous year.
Almost 2,300 legal actions against the State were settled in 2016 – a 24 per cent increase on 2015.
Claims against the Health Service Executive and child protection agency Tusla accounted for €1.9bn.
The Department of Health accounted for claims totalling €27m, and the Department of Justice and Defence, including the Gardaí, prison service and Army, faced claims of €175m.
The Department of Education paid out €50m.
Smaller departments and agencies were responsible for cases worth €27m.
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