The High Court has dismissed a personal injuries claim by Dunnes Stores sales assistant Jean Falsey, who fell from a step-ladder while working at the company’s St Kieran’s Street branch in Kilkenny on 27 June 2014.
The case was re-tried before the High Court on Circuit in Kilkenny under section 38(1)(b) of the Courts of Justice Act 1936. Falsey claimed that Dunnes Stores was responsible through negligence, nuisance, breach of statutory duty and breach of contract. Her case included allegations that the ladder was defective and that she had not received adequate training in its use.
The judgment records that Falsey suffered pain in her chest, pelvis, thigh and side after the fall, followed by neck, shoulder and lower-back pain. She attended nine physiotherapy sessions and did not return to work for 13 weeks. The doctors who examined her disagreed about the likelihood of lasting symptoms: two considered a full recovery likely, while her GP expressed concern that her limitations could persist or worsen.
Falsey testified that the ladder “just give way”. However, CCTV footage shown in court depicted her falling while the ladder remained stationary. The judge said this conflict fundamentally undermined her credibility. The court found that she received step-ladder training in 2012, relying on a signed training certificate and the evidence of Dunnes Stores human resources manager Ciara Hogan.
The judge accepted the evidence of the company’s engineer, Donal Terry, over that of Falsey’s engineer, Jack O’Reilly, on whether the ladder had a material defect. Terry said the ladder was stable when weighted by a user. The judge was also not persuaded that its design was defective. The court found that Falsey was standing on the second step, holding the handrail, shortly before she fell.
On the balance of probabilities, the judge concluded that Falsey missed a step while descending. He also found that she had used the ladder in a way that put herself at risk and that there had been no failure to supervise her. The judgment said it was unnecessary to decide whether ladder training formed part of the employer’s legal duties, though the judge expressed doubt that it did in this case.
The court dismissed Falsey’s claim. The judgment does not state that damages were awarded.