I have written a number of BLOGS on our website brilliantreddev.co.uk/morganmcmanus recently on Accident Claims which have been dismissed by the High Court in circumstances where liability may even have been admitted but the Plaintiff is deemed to have exaggerated his injuries and thus has had his Claim dismissed under Section 26 of the Civil Liability & Courts Act 2004. This has put a huge strain on Plaintiffs who are genuinely seriously injured but who run the risk that an aggressive approach by the Defendant questioning the honesty of the Plaintiff could lead to the dismissal of the Plaintiff`s entire Claim with an Order for legal costs against him.
I have now written an Article on this case Goodwin –v- Bus Eireann [SC Rec No 262/08] delivered on the 23rd February 2012 on our website at https://www.morganmcmanus.com/pdfs/supreme_court_upholds_refusal_to_dismiss_personal_injuries.pdf
The Court brought some clarity as to the circumstances in which a Plaintiff should be deemed to have exaggerated his symptoms and the manner in which the Court should address the medical evidence of the Defendant.
The Supreme Court stated that the defendant had to establish that the plaintiff had given evidence which was false or misleading in a material respect and, most crucially, that she knew it to be false or misleading. The Court commented that it was obvious that the defendant, upon whom the burden lies, faces a daunting task in making its case on appeal in circumstances where the trial judge, invited expressly to do so, declined to make such a finding and expressly said that she was not satisfied that the plaintiff had knowingly given false or misleading evidence.
The Court dismissed the appeal and affirmed the order of the High Court.
Further detail is available on my Article.