A judge has thrown out four claims for a total of â¬240,000 in damages arising from an accident close to the Border in which four occupants of a car that was ârear-endedâ claimed to have sustained significant injuries.
Judge James McCourt described the difference in medical reports provided by Dundalk doctor John Murphy for the four plaintiffs and the histories recorded on their complaints by Blackrock Clinic orthopaedic surgeon Garry Fenelon, who had examined each of the plaintiffs on behalf of defendant South County Self Drive, Rochestown Avenue, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin, as âremarkableâ.
The rear-ending incident happened on December 1st 2014 on a slip road off the M1 motorway at Carrickdale, Dundalk.
There was a âsurgeâ in personal injury cases lodged last week in the run-up to the new reduced damages regime for injury compensation, according to a spokesman for the Courts Service.
While there were 670 personal injury summonses lodged last week with the High Court, the same period last year saw just 100, the spokesman said.
Figures are not available for the Circuit Court but legal sources said that a rush to lodge claims at that court was also evident.
New guidelines for personal injury awards adopted by the Judicial Council in March came into effect from Saturday.
The guidelines will see cuts of up to 50 per cent in the awards given for most types of minor and medium-range injuries.