Personal Injury

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

Ministers are planning to bring proposals to the Dáil to protect sports clubs from some personal injuries claims, according to reports. Michael D'Arcy, minister of state with responsibility for insurance reform, told the Irish Independent that proposals to amend the Civil Liability Act and th

The Bar Council of Ireland has rejected claims that it has "unilaterally" dropped a long-standing undertaking to limit the number of senior counsel involved in personal injury cases. David Mack, head of legal services at the State Claims Agency (SCA), told the Oireachtas justice committee that the B

A cyclist who suffered a broken foot when a motorist drove over his foot at a junction has been awarded €20,640 in the High Court. His original claim was for €51,600 in damages, however Mr Justice David Keane apportioned only 40 per cent liability to the motorist for failing to keep a prop

New figures have "shone a statistical searchlight on the false and exaggerated claims of the Irish motor insurance industry", the Law Society of Ireland has said. The Central Bank of Ireland yesterday published figures showing that premiums increased by 42 per cent between 2009 and 2018, despite the

Average motor insurance premiums increased by 42 per cent between 2009 and 2018, despite the cost of claims per policy decreasing by 2.5 per cent over the same period, according to new Central Bank of Ireland figures. The bank's first annual Private Motor Insurance Report of the National Claims Info

Four models for capping personal injury awards have been set out by the Law Reform Commission in an issues paper published today. The Cost of Insurance Working Group (CIWG) and the Personal Injuries Commission (PIC) previously recommended that the law reform body should examine whether a statutory c

Personal injury solicitors are not guilty of misconduct just because their client's claim has been dismissed, a High Court judge has affirmed in response to allegations from an insurance firm. Mr Justice Charles Meenan made the comments as he refused an application from Aviva Insurance for a wasted