The High Court awarded Freddie O’Riordan €1.14 million in damages after finding that injuries sustained in a 2007 road crash left him with a severe, persistent psychiatric condition and little prospect of returning to open employment.
In a judgment delivered on 7 November 2014, Mr Justice Cross assessed the award at €1,140,000, rounded down from €1,140,431.92. The case concerned damages arising from the collision, in which Mr O’Riordan was a seatbelt-restrained rear passenger in a car driven by Bernard Dempsey when it was struck from behind by a vehicle driven by Kevin Byrne.
The judgment records that Mr O’Riordan suffered extensive nasal injuries and underwent surgery. The judge said the major lasting injury was psychological: he accepted that Mr O’Riordan developed Body Dysmorphic Disorder, depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The PTSD symptoms had resolved by the time of judgment, but the depression and Body Dysmorphic Disorder continued. The judgment describes periods of hospital treatment, self-harm and extreme social withdrawal.
The court considered evidence from medical specialists, including a psychiatrist called for the defendants, and a vocational therapist. The defendants’ psychiatrist hoped counselling and medication might improve Mr O’Riordan’s functioning. The judge nevertheless found, on the balance of probabilities, that Mr O’Riordan was unlikely ever to return to meaningful work on the open market. He accepted that, without the crash, Mr O’Riordan would probably have completed his plumbing apprenticeship and maintained employment.
The assessment included €54,431.92 for losses and expenses to the date of judgment, €23,000 for future medication, €13,000 for future counselling and €600,000 for future loss of earnings. General damages totalled €450,000: €260,000 for injuries to date and €190,000 for future effects. The judge considered arguments about a general damages ceiling in catastrophic injury cases and concluded that €450,000 was fair and reasonable in these circumstances.
The judgment assessed damages. It does not state in the supplied text whether any further order was made concerning costs or payment.