The High Court found that a Dublin City Council lighting department worker should have seen a large cable spool on a Sandymount footpath before he tripped over it in 2009. The court held him 25% responsible for the consequences of the fall and assessed his total damages at €342,799.84 before that deduction, resulting in an award of €257,099.88.
In a judgment delivered on 17 July 2012, Ms Justice Irvine said the Electricity Supply Board had conceded liability, subject to its claim that the plaintiff was contributorily negligent. The plaintiff, Liam Murray, was injured while working on Beach Road, Sandymount, on 17 August 2009. He was carrying a ladder and other equipment when he tripped over a spool of electric cable attached to the base of an ESB lamp standard.
The judge said the spool was large, the plaintiff’s view was unobstructed and a cursory glance would have revealed it. She concluded that he should have seen it despite carrying equipment. She apportioned 25% of liability to him.
The court heard that the plaintiff injured his shoulder and cut his knee in the fall. He later developed arm and neck symptoms and underwent cervical disc surgery. He obtained significant relief from arm pain, but continued to report discomfort at the base of his neck. The judgment also records that he was retired on ill-health grounds in April 2010 and had not returned to work.
The plaintiff claimed €67,000 for past loss of earnings and sought future earnings, pension and lump-sum losses. The judge accepted the past earnings claim. She reduced the combined future earnings, pension and lump-sum figures by 10% for contingencies, then deducted €50,000 to reflect her assessment that he could earn about €200 net a week through part-time, intermittent work. She considered that he had made little or no effort to seek other work, while also accepting vocational evidence about the obstacles he would face in finding employment.
The court awarded €50,000 for pain and suffering to date and €30,000 for future pain and suffering. It included €11,170.84 in agreed special damages. The judgment lists a subtotal of €242,799.84, deducts €85,699.96 for the plaintiff’s 25% share, and gives a final total of €257,099.88.