Personal Injuries

We can help you establish whether you have a claim. For a case to be stateable, it must be shown that the defendant owed you a duty of care, breached that duty, and that the breach caused you damage. The courts will normally take into account the standard of care involved, including the probability of the accident, the gravity of the injury, its social utility and the cost of eliminating the risk. We will advise you on whether the claim is worth pursuing, and deal with it expediently, professionally and confidentially.

The Injuries Board

Before court proceedings can be commenced, almost all personal injury claims, medical negligence being the main exception, must first be submitted to the Injuries Board, an independent statutory body established under the Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003. The Board offers an independent assessment of claims arising from road traffic, workplace and public liability accidents. It does not hear cases, so it can only deal with matters where liability is not in dispute.

We can submit and manage your claim through that process, advise you on how it works, and discuss any settlement offer that arises along the way. If the respondent does not consent to the Board assessing the claim, or if either party considers an award unsatisfactory, the Board issues an authorisation and legal proceedings can then be issued.

If proceedings are issued

Where proceedings issue, we offer clear advice on the steps to be followed:

• The claim itself, and the best avenue to pursue it
• Obtaining updated medical reports
• Assembling the financial information, including loss of earnings, and instructing an actuary or other expert where one is needed
• Any necessary applications to the court as the case develops
• Any settlement offer or settlement meeting before the court date: we engage a highly reputable barrister to work with us and advise you
• The court date itself: attendance, witnesses and the case as it has developed

Time limits

The legal time limit for a personal injury claim is two years from the date of the recognisable injury, or from the date of knowledge of the injury, because in some cases a person does not realise they have been injured until some time after the accident, and the clock then starts from that date.

The date of knowledge is the date on which you first knew:

• That you had been injured;
• That it was a significant injury;
• The identity of the defendant; and
• That the injury was caused, in whole or in part, by an act or omission alleged to constitute negligence, nuisance or breach of duty.

A child cannot bring a claim. The clock starts on their eighteenth birthday and they then have two years to make their claim; alternatively, a parent or legal guardian can bring the claim on the child's behalf immediately after the accident.

Road traffic accidents

If you were involved in a car accident that was not your fault in the past two years and suffered an injury of some kind, you may be entitled to compensation. If you were a passenger, your claim would be made against the insurance company of the person responsible for the accident. If the other driver was uninsured, you are protected by the Motor Insurers' Bureau of Ireland (MIBI) agreement.

We can assist you in obtaining Garda reports, medical reports and engineering reports, and in registering your claim. We will navigate you through the legislation, liaise and negotiate with the insurance companies on your behalf, and work to get you the best possible result.

Accidents at work

If you are involved in an accident at work that was not your fault, suffer a workplace injury and are off work for a period of time, you may be able to make a claim for compensation.

Under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, every employer has a responsibility to protect their employees and to provide a safe place of work, proper equipment, a safe system of work and competent staff. That Act provides the statutory framework for securing the safety, health and wellbeing of employees at work.

If you are injured in an accident at work you should seek medical assistance, report the incident, and get legal advice. If you do not commence your claim within the two-year period that applies, the claim becomes statute-barred and you will not be entitled to any recompense, so contact a solicitor without delay.

What you can recover

General damages

Damages for pain and suffering, and for the emotional damage following the accident.

Special damages

Out-of-pocket expenses incurred as a result of the accident: loss of earnings, medical bills, travel costs relating to the injury, prescription charges and so on.

A note on fees

In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.