The Court of Appeal has dismissed Atlantic Troy Limited’s appeal against a High Court judgment awarding Patricia Sweeney €91,000 for injuries she suffered in a fall at a hotel wedding reception. It also dismissed Ms Sweeney’s cross-appeal seeking a higher award.
Ms Sweeney fell as she was leaving the dancefloor at the Charleville Park Hotel in Charleville, County Cork, at about 2am on 2 May 2015. The High Court found the hotel company liable under occupiers’ liability and hotel-proprietor duties, and awarded €48,500 for damages to date and €42,500 for future damages.
The Court of Appeal upheld the finding that the dancefloor was wet. Ms Sweeney and witnesses Mark Howard and Tracey Daly gave evidence that the floor, or their clothing and hands after helping her, were wet. Hotel night manager Jonathan Finn said he saw no wet patch when he inspected the area. The appeal judgment noted that his inspection was directed at a possible carpet hazard and that he had not been told to look for a spill.
The court said drinks were carried across the dancefloor by people going to and from the bar, and that the wet floor was highly slippery. It upheld the High Court’s conclusion that the hotel had not demonstrated a system for inspecting, monitoring or cleaning spillages. It found no basis to disturb the trial judge’s assessment of the witnesses or liability finding.
The hotel also argued that Ms Sweeney was contributorily negligent because of alcohol consumption and her footwear. The Court of Appeal said drinking several beers, without more, did not establish negligence, and there was no evidence that her flip-flops caused the fall. It upheld the conclusion that there was no contributory negligence.
Ms Sweeney suffered fractures to her heel bone and ankle and underwent surgery. The appeal judgment records continuing pain, swelling and restricted movement, alongside medical evidence that her residual symptoms were permanent. The hotel challenged the award as excessive, arguing that a lower sum would be appropriate. The Court of Appeal said the award might be higher than it would itself have made, but the hotel had not shown the disparity amounted to an error of law. It therefore declined to interfere.
Ms Sweeney’s cross-appeal sought an uplift for scarring, swelling, psychological stress and possible future surgery. The court held those matters were encompassed by the severe and permanent injury category applied by the High Court and dismissed the cross-appeal.
The court proposed that Ms Sweeney receive her costs of the appeal and made no order as to the costs of the cross-appeal. The parties were given 14 days to make written submissions on an alternative costs order, with 14 days for a response. The judgment was delivered electronically on 6 November 2023.