Update on Personal Injury Guidelines

Introduction

The Personal Injuries Guidelines Committee (the “Committee”) have carried out a review of the Personal Injuries Guidelines (the “Guidelines”) having regard to the following two matters:

1. The significant global and national inflation rates which have occurred in the three years since the adoption of the Guidelines; and
2. The jurisprudence of the Superior Courts regarding the proper approach to the assessment of damages in multiple injuries cases.

The new Guidelines would see the general damages figure for the most serious injuries increase from €550,000 to €642,000. When reaching this figure, the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (“HICP”) was considered. In the three years since the adoption of the 1^st Edition, the HICP has risen by 15.6% and as such, the Committee’s view was to increase the original values by 15.6%. The Board of the Judicial Council met on 21 October 2024 and has modified the value of awards calculated by the Committee at the rate of 16.7%.

Use of Guidelines

At the conclusion of a case each party must make submissions identifying the damages bracket(s) which most closely correspond with the alleged injury and where within the bracket(s) the relevant injury falls in terms of severity. The trial judge must have regard to the Guidelines in arriving at an award that is fair and proportionate. Should a judge depart from the Guidelines, it is mandatory to state the reasons for such a departure.

Multiple injuries

When assessing multiple injuries, the “dominant injury” was always identified and considered. Once the dominant injury has been identified, the other “non-dominant” injuries are considered. The Court then applies an “uplift” to the value of the dominant injury to reflect the impact of the other injuries. This has given rise to particular challenges as it is rarely appropriate to simply add categories together.

The new Guidelines have suggested that to arrive at a just result, “the judge must step back from the categories in order to assess the overall impact of all the injuries on the claimant, and place them on the scale in a way that is proportionate.”

The Guidelines have taken the approach of a “global discount” as opposed to the adding together of injuries which likely occurred at the same time.

Injuries which do not fall within identified categories within the Guidelines

The Committee have considered novel or infrequent injuries which are not captured by the Guidelines. When considering a novel or infrequent injury, a Court shall value the injury by reference to equally significant injuries in the Guidelines. The Committee concluded that no issues have been brought to their attention which would require the addition of further categories of injuries within the Guidelines.

The draft Guidelines will go before the judicial council for approval in late January.