The High Court awarded Michelle Murphy (née Condon) €212,608 in damages after a road crash in November 2006. The defendant, Tom Roche, had admitted liability, so the case before Mr Justice McMahon concerned the assessment of damages only.
Ms Murphy was a front-seat passenger in a car driven by her husband when it was struck on the passenger side and pushed into a third vehicle. She was taken to Cork University Hospital. At the time, she was in the early stages of pregnancy. The judgment records soft-tissue injuries to her shoulder, neck, back and chest, as well as anxiety about her unborn child. The baby was born at full term and in good health.
The judge accepted that two earlier incidents did not cause the injuries at issue. A 1996 fall down stairs had resulted in €10,000 compensation, but the judge found those injuries had resolved. He also accepted Ms Murphy’s evidence that she suffered no physical injury in a minor July 2006 collision and that her two-week absence from work then related to pregnancy concerns and tests.
Medical evidence described a slow recovery. Ms Murphy’s shoulder, neck and back had improved, but she continued to report chest pain. The judge estimated she would make a good, if not full, recovery within about two and a half years. He was not satisfied she could return to her former job, which involved repetitive lifting and twisting and 12-hour shifts. He also rejected the suggestion that surveillance evidence undermined her account of her injuries.
The court awarded €45,000 for pain and suffering to the date of judgment, €25,000 for future pain and suffering and €9,563 in agreed medical expenses. It allowed €77,353 for past loss of earnings, including reduced pay after she returned part-time, but disallowed €7,728 claimed for an extension of maternity leave. The judge accepted that accident-related anxiety justified her decision to remain off work shortly before the baby’s birth.
For future earnings, the judge considered it reasonably probable that Ms Murphy would take a lower-paid role with her existing employer. He calculated the difference from her former salary over a 10-year period at €55,692. The judgment gives the total award as €212,608.