The High Court has increased a woman’s compensation for loss of her father’s society from €50,000 to €120,000, allowing her appeal against an award by the Hepatitis C and HIV Compensation Tribunal.
The judgment, delivered by Mr Justice Bernard J. Barton on 6 October 2017, concerned only the claim for loss of society. The woman had already received compensation under other heads, including post-traumatic stress disorder and loss of opportunity. The court said no new substantive issues arose on appeal; it had to decide whether the tribunal’s award was fair and reasonable.
The woman’s father had severe haemophilia A and received blood transfusions and Factor VIII during the 1980s and 1990s. Some blood and blood products he received in the State were contaminated with hepatitis B and hepatitis C. He developed decompensated liver disease, stopped working and died aged 51. The judgment records that hepatitis C was accepted as a significant contributory factor in his death.
The court heard evidence from the woman and clinical psychologist Ms Jo Campion, and considered expert reports and the tribunal record. The respondent accepted that, but for his death, the father’s probable life expectancy was 31.45 years. The judge said the woman had already spent 25 years without her father’s love, advice, support, care and companionship, and that the loss was likely to continue for a further five years.
In assessing the relationship, the judge referred to evidence that her father had helped with domestic life and her homework, encouraged her education and prepared her for his death. The judgment also describes the responsibilities she took on after his death, including caring for her younger brother, and the milestones at which she missed her father’s presence.
The court considered earlier tribunal awards of €100,000 in other loss-of-society claims, while noting that the circumstances and evidence in those cases were not fully available from the records before it. It concluded that €120,000 was fair and reasonable compensation for the loss suffered to date and expected in the future.
The court allowed the appeal and varied the tribunal award accordingly. The judgment said the final form of the orders would be discussed with counsel; it did not set out those final orders.