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Court approves settlement of fatal injuries claim that had been brought to the CervicalCheck Tribunal
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High Court approves settlement of a fatal injuries claim which had been pursued by the making of a claim to the CervicalCheck Tribunal, on the grounds that: the proper procedure to be followed is that an application for approval of a proposed settlement of a claim be made directly to the High Court and, having regard to the supervisory role which it has under the CervicalCheck Tribunal legislation, the Court enjoys an implicit jurisdiction to rule upon a proposed settlement of a fatal injuries claim in circumstances where there are vulnerable, dissenting or absent family members involved; and the court deems that the apportionment of €4,000 to each of the grandchildren of the solatium was appropriate, finding that it was unlikely that the CervicalCheck Tribunal would award a higher figure to the grandchildren.
Personal injuries – fatal injuries - application to approve a proposed settlement of a fatal injuries claim - three of the statutory dependants of the deceased are children under eighteen years of age - claim has been pursued, in the first instance, by the making of a claim to the CervicalCheck Tribunal - whether, in the absence of such legal proceedings, the High Court nevertheless has jurisdiction to approve the proposed settlement on behalf of the minor statutory dependants - procedural history and jurisdictional issue - role of the court in deciding whether or not to approve a proposed settlement of legal proceedings - no express provision made under the Act for the CervicalCheck Tribunal to approve a proposed settlement of a claim - apparent from the legislation that the Oireachtas did not intend the CervicalCheck Tribunal to carry out the administration of justice, even in a limited capacity - the final determination of any claim for damages was to remain with the High Court - proper procedure to be followed, therefore, is that an application for approval of a proposed settlement of a claim should be made directly to the High Court - High Court enjoys an implicit jurisdiction to rule upon a proposed settlement of a fatal injuries claim in circumstances where there are vulnerable, dissenting or absent family members involved - consideration of the proposed settlement - reasonable steps have been taken to ensure that all statutory dependants are aware of the making of a claim and are afforded an opportunity to object to a proposed settlement - no claim for loss of financial dependency on behalf of any of the grandchildren - grandchildren’s interest in the settlement is thus confined to a right to be considered for a share of the overall solatium of €35,000 - proposed that each of the grandchildren should be allowed a sum of €4,000 - unlikely that the CervicalCheck Tribunal would award a higher figure to the grandchildren – settlement approved.
Note: This is intended to be a fair and accurate report of a decision made public by a court of law. Any errors should be notified to the editor and will be dealt with accordingly.
