The High Court increased a provisional compensation award to N.C. from €150,000 to €185,000 after allowing her appeal against a decision of the Hepatitis C and HIV Compensation Tribunal. The appeal was brought under section 5(15) of the Hepatitis C Compensation Tribunal Act, 1997, as amended, and concerned the amount payable for decompensated liver cirrhosis and its probable consequences.
The judgment, delivered by Mr Justice Bernard J. Barton on 20 October 2017, said N.C. had contracted hepatitis C after receiving a contaminated batch of Anti-D on or about 28 August 1997. An earlier Tribunal hearing in 1998 resulted in provisional awards, with a right to return if her disease deteriorated to cirrhosis or liver cancer. The decision under appeal, made on 25 April 2017, had set a provisional award of €150,000, subject to circumstances that could entitle her to return to the Tribunal.
The court heard that N.C. developed advanced cirrhosis and portal hypertension. She underwent direct acting antiviral treatment in 2015 and cleared the virus, improving her life expectancy. However, her liver remained decompensated, and she continued to experience low-grade encephalopathy affecting her thinking and balance. The judge accepted medical evidence that encephalopathy was the most likely explanation for a fall in January 2016, in which she suffered multiple rib fractures, lung contusions and a haemothorax, followed by hospital treatment and rehabilitation.
The judgment also described lasting physical and cognitive limitations, alongside other medical conditions that were not caused by hepatitis C. In setting the award, the court said it would not account for the risk of future deterioration or other specified events for which N.C. could return to the Tribunal and seek a full assessment. It considered prior authorities, including A.M. v. The Minister for Health and Children, while finding that case’s circumstances were more grave.
The court ruled that €185,000 was fair and reasonable compensation, including for injuries from the fall. It allowed the appeal and substituted that sum for the Tribunal’s €150,000 award. The remaining terms of the provisional award were affirmed.