Recent Superior Court cases cover criminal injuries, defamation, employment, family law, limitation of actions, personal injuries, practice and procedure, professional misconduct, social welfare and more.
Recent cases published on the Courts website are listed below.
Criminal Injuries
Cunningham Cummins, Eddie and Erica Cunningham Cummins (suing by her mother and next friend Michelle Cunningham) v Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal and Minister for Justice
23/2/2024 No. 2022/891 JR [2024] IEHC 143
Criminal injuries - Compensation scheme set up for those who suffer personal injuries as a result of crimes of violence and the dependents of those who are victims of a fatal attack - Applicants are children of father shot dead at his home - Application for compensation refused on the grounds that the conduct or character of their father made it inappropriate to do so - Applicants seek to quash the decision - Whether the Scheme misinterpreted - Whether the decision was ultra vires the powers of the Tribunal - Whether the decision was unreasonable or unsupported by reasons - Certiorari refused
Defamation
Desmond, Dermot v Irish Times Limited
5/3/2024 No. 2016/6187 P [2024] IEHC 134
Defamation - Newspaper articles - Plaintiff claims articles defamed him - Personal information - Panama Papers - Public interest - S. 26 of the Defamation Act 2009 - Fair and reasonable publication - Defence of publication in the public interest and breach of privacy - Proposed expert evidence - Whether a statement in the article was "discussion of a subject of public interest, the discussion of which was for the public benefit" - Admissibility of expert evidence
Employment
Hosford, Pascal v Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection and ors
19/3/2024 Nos. 2022/2114 P; 2022/2115 P; 2022/2116 P; 2022/5733 P [2024] IEHC 154
Employment - Civil servant - Department of Social Welfare - Transfer to different section - Conflict - Dispute - Decision to transfer - High Court proceedings - Plaintiff application for judicial review refused - Appeal - Complaints to WRC - Motions to strike out plaintiff's claims - Claims fail to disclose a cause of action or being frivolous and vexatious, or as an abuse of process - Isaac Wunder order - Application for Isaac Wunder order refused - Orders made
Family Law
A (W) v T (A) and Minister for Justice acting as the Central Authority (notice party)
13/3/2024 No. 2022/8 HLC [2024] IEHC 142
Family law - Children - Wrongful removal - Children retained in Poland by respondent mother without father's consent - Applicant father seeking return of two children to Ireland - Polish court proceedings - Return orders made - Further proceedings - Grave risk defence - Evidence - Expert assessor's report - Fear of violence, parental alienation - Best interests of children require they remain in Poland
Limitation of Actions
Kielthy, Lorraine v Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital
19/3/2024 No. 2022/2231 P [2024] IEHC 173
Limitation of actions - Personal injuries - Substantive issues - Injury sustained during child birth in 1995 - Defendant motion - Defendant seeking order - Preliminary issues - Plaintiff's claim was barred pursuant to the Statute of Limitations Act 1957 and the Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Act 1991 - Plaintiff's claim be dismissed on grounds of delay - Defendant now seeks to amend this notice of motion to seek a determination of preliminary issues through oral testimony - Defendant application refused
Personal Injuries
Kavanagh, Sean v Salesian of Don Bosco of Ireland
20/2/2024 No. 2020/1228 P [2024] IEHC 172
Personal injuries - Damages claim - Schoolboy - After school homework club - No adult supervision - Fight between pupils - Plaintiff received kick to the groin - Ongoing pain and surgery - Plaintiff alleges that had adult supervision been provided he would not now be suffering the effects of such kick - School denies liability - Incident occurred during a transitional phase between end of the school day and the start of homework club - Evidence - Plaintiff's claim dismissed
Practice and Procedure
BOC Aviation (Ireland) limited and ors v Lloyd's Insurance Company S.A.
19/3/2024 No. 2022/5538 P [2024] IEHC 162
Practice and Procedure - Aviation insurance - Aircraft lessors - Court proceedings - Russian airlines - Expert witnesses - Expert's report - Russian Authorities - Relief sought - Potential exposure to harm - Plaintiff application seeking orders - Permitted to anonymise and redact the witness statement of one of their expert witnesses - Protect the identity of the witness from disclosure in the course of the trial - Parties to liaise with a view to reaching agreement on the draft order
DPP (at the suit of Garda Declan O'Brien) v O'Connor, Hannah
13/3/2024 No. 2022/1356 SS [2024] IEHC 144
Practice and procedure - Case stated from the District Court - Road traffic offence - Drunken driving - Evidenzer apparatus - Breath analysis - Error - Evidence - Admissibility - Questions posed by the President of the District Court to the High Court for determination - Was the garda otherwise entitled to amend the s.13 statements which were automatically produced where the amendment had been notified to the accused prior to her signing the statement and I found as a fact that the amendment caused no prejudice nor injustice to the accused? - If the answer to question (1) is no, based on my findings, is the s.13 statement annexed to this case stated admissible in evidence? - Answers to the questions posed by the District Court are: No; and No
Professional Misconduct
Ahmed, Saqib v Fitness to Practice Committee of the Medical Council
5/3/2024 No. 2022/51 SP [2024] IEHC 168
Professional misconduct - Doctor - Fitness to Practice Committee - Inquiry - Failure to carry out basic tests - Once-off error - Finding of poor professional performance (PPP) - Sanction - Appeal - S.75 of the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 - Expert evidence - Submissions - Mitigation - Finding of PPP and the resultant sanction quashed - Appeal allowed
Social Welfare
F (P) v Minister for Social protection, Chief Appeals Officer and Social Welfare Appeals Office, In the matter of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005
12/3/2024 No. 2022/219 SP [2024] IEHC 148
Social welfare - Non-contributory pension - Means-based entitlement - Assessment - Increase in means - Qualify for pension ceased - Failure to notify social welfare authorities - Appeals officer decision - Recipient ceased to have mental capacity to advise social welfare authorities - Recipient now deceased - Overpayment - Liability of estate - Appeal to High Court on a question of law - S.327 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 - Quantification of liability - Appeal dismissed
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