The High Court awarded Barbara Seligman €94,757.72 in damages after finding that a December 2014 road traffic accident exacerbated degenerative changes in her spine that had been symptom-free for years.
Liability was not in issue. The court heard that Seligman’s stationary car was struck from behind while she was in traffic on the M50. The impact pushed her car into the vehicle ahead, which in turn struck another car. There was no claim of contributory negligence.
Mr Justice Barr, delivering judgment on 23 February 2018, accepted Seligman’s account of continuing neck and back pain and the restrictions it caused. He found that she had not exaggerated her symptoms. Before the collision, she had a history of back pain and spinal degeneration, but said she had been pain-free and fully mobile for years.
Medical reports described persistent pain, difficulty with stairs and long drives, and treatment with rhizotomy procedures. The court preferred the opinion of her treating pain specialist, Dr Paul Murphy, that her pain was facet-joint mediated and related to the accident. The judge also accepted that the collision had aggravated underlying degeneration that had been asymptomatic for many years.
The evidence included differing views on prognosis. Dr Murphy considered that pain and disability were likely to continue, while a pain specialist retained by the defendants expected gradual improvement, though not necessarily a complete resolution. The judge noted that the specialists agreed further rhizotomy treatment would be needed. He found that Seligman remained significantly disabled in ordinary activities, particularly climbing stairs and driving long distances.
The court awarded €55,000 for pain and suffering to the date of judgment and €20,000 for future pain and suffering. It added an agreed special-damages sum. The judgment gives that sum as €19,757.72 in its introduction, but as €19,757.20 in the paragraph calculating the total. The overall award stated by the court was €94,757.72.