Council pays €170k to boy hit by truck
Counsel Lorraine O’Sullivan said the council consented to judgment of €170,000 and said liability was very strongly an issue in the case before the High Court sitting in Cork.
Siobhán Lankford, counsel for the plaintiff, then told Mr Justice Michael Hanna the plaintiff’s lawyers were recommending acceptance of the settlement offer.
The judge said: “This is a case with a significant risk of liability. [If the case went to hearing,] the plaintiff could leave the court with nothing and his parents facing an order for costs.”
The judge said the sum on offer met the liability issue extremely well where there was little objective evidence to support the plaintiff in relation to how the accident happened.
Jamie Long brought the action through his mother, Catherine Long, of The Hawthorns, Chapel Lane, Skibbereen, Co Cork.
On April 11, 2013, the plaintiff was struck by a council truck outside his home, which rolled over his left leg leaving him with an injury to his foot which still requires pain management. Jamie was six years and 11 months old at the time.
Ms Long said the pain suffered by her son on a daily basis depends on his level of activity. For instance, he could play a game of football but then wake in the early hours of the morning with severe pain.
Ms Long said of the offer: “It is a fabulous amount of money, there is no saying otherwise but he has a long life ahead of him. Jamie’s interests is what it is all about.”
Mr Justice Hanna said he absolutely knows where the plaintiff’s mother is coming from but said that in light of the amount on offer and the risk of ending up with nothing he had to approve the offer, the bulk of which was lodged in court until he reaches the age of 18.
