The High Court on Circuit ruled that a Garda injured in incidents involving uninsured drivers was not required to apply for compensation under the Garda Síochána (Compensation) Act 1941 before pursuing proceedings against the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland (MIBI).
In an ex tempore judgment delivered on 18 May 2022, Mr Justice Heslin decided the first issue in two linked appeals brought by Patrick Melody. The appeals concern separate Circuit Court records, one naming James O’Connor and Daniel Kelly as defendants and the other naming Michelle Molloy and Jamie Marshall. The MIBI is also a defendant in both. The judge said he was deciding this issue before quantum.
The MIBI argued that it was a “fund of last resort” and that Melody should first have sought compensation under the 1941 Act. Its counsel said the alleged incidents were deliberate and malicious, and that a protective writ or proceedings could have been issued to address the scheme’s time limits. The judgment records the MIBI’s submission that Melody should not be entitled to seek compensation in the proceedings because he could have applied under the Act.
The judge found no statutory provision, legal principle or authority requiring a Garda in Melody’s position to make such an application. He noted that the Act sets deadlines and procedures for applications but does not make an application mandatory. An applicant also needs ministerial authorisation before applying to the High Court under the scheme, and has no right to that authorisation.
The court concluded that Melody had a right to apply under the Act, but no obligation to do so. Because he had not applied, the judge held that he was not someone “entitled to receive benefit” for the purposes of clause 4.4 of the MIBI Agreement 2009. That clause provides for deductions where a claimant has received or is entitled to receive benefit or compensation from another source. The judge said the position could be different if a claimant had applied, received authorisation and compensation, but that was not the situation before him.
The judgment therefore determined that Melody was entitled to bring the proceedings. It did not decide the amount of compensation: after saying he had considered the evidence and agreed medical reports, the judge invited brief submissions on quantum. The final note records that quantum was agreed by the parties.