In a personal injury case, there is a two year “limitation period” to start a legal claim. This time ‘runs’ from the date of the accident. Not only that, you must notify the party you intend to claim against in writing of the circumstances giving rise to your claim within only one month of you becoming aware of those.

Time may not start to run immediately. For example if you are under eighteen. Or, it might only start on the date you identify a connection between your symptoms and what caused them as being as a result of an accident or incident.

It’s always advisable to seek legal advice as soon as possible.

The Injuries Board was established to independently assess the value of personal injury claims where the person who caused your injury consents to that. Most cases must start with an application to the Injuries Board.

Usually the Injuries Board issue an assessment within 9 months from the date the defendant agrees to the Injuries Board dealing with the matter. If the Defendant does not agree to the Injuries Board assessing the case, the Board will release the case far sooner.

Depending on whether or not you decide to accept the assessment of the Injuries Board the matter can then go into the courts system. The length of the process then depends on whether the case is processed through the Circuit or High Court. However, if settlement can be reached, and provided that your injury does not get progressively worse, it is possible to have the matter fully dealt with quickly after your case is released from the Injuries Board.

TMR Fitzsimons will go through all of the details with you to make your claim. A medical report must be obtained in relation to your injuries and an application form must be submitted to the Injuries Board. We will do all the work for you so you can concentrate on getting better.

Be careful if an insurance company may offer to deal with you directly shortly after an accident. The insurance company does not have your best interests in mind. It is in their interest to settle cases as soon as possible after an accident, even though you may not know the extent of your injuries at that stage. You risk accepting compensation that is too low.

The Injuries Board will also say that you do not need a solicitor to process a claim. But do you have the knowledge to assess whether the assessment of damages is sufficient. Worse, if you make a mis-step during the Injuries Board process the insurance company can use that mistake to seek to deny you compensation and you would otherwise be entitled too.

Your solicitor acts solely in your best interests and has the knowledge and expertise to fully advise you. At a difficult time, that makes sense to us

• We have to get your medical records and review them, including with one of our medical negligence specialist barristers.
• Specialist medical experts may then be instructed to consider whether or not the treatment was negligent, and if it was, what damage it did. This will involve getting a medical legal report.
• If we consider that we have enough evidence to prove the case for medical negligence, then we advise starting court proceedings immediately. You must have a supporting medical legal report to back up any claims of negligence made in a medical negligence summons.
• Although, medical negligence cases can be settled by negotiation without the need to proceed to a full trial but they are rarely resolved without starting court action.

It’s always advisable to seek legal advice as soon as possible.

your allegations are supported by an expert report stating that your medical practitioner has been negligent in treating you.

Secondly, you will also need a medical expert report linking that negligence as a cause of additional or worsened condition or treatment. Without these reports no proceedings should be served.

Because of the two year limitation period, acting fast is important and this can mean obtaining medical records and obtaining medical expert reports while treatment is ongoing.

Legal action must be taken within two years of the date you first knew, or could reasonably have been expected to know, that you have suffered an injury caused through someone else’s fault. This is called the date of knowledge. Starting the two year deadline from the date of knowledge is useful as it is often some time before you may become aware of the negligence mistreatment that you have suffered. Special rules apply for children and for some others.

You must seek advice quickly because there are strict time limits for making complaints and it can take time to obtain and consider your medical records and to obtain medical expert reports on your treatment.

Legal responsibility in medical negligence looks not only at liability for negligent treatment or diagnosis, but also, importantly, at whether this caused or worsened your medical condition.

This causation element is often the trickiest part of the case. The medical practitioner may claim that the injury arose from the illness itself and not from the treatment; or that the injury would have come about in any event.

However, even if your condition may have been underlying, meaning that you have a problem proving causation for your medical condition, you may still have suffered from having undergone a more difficult course of treatment or management of your condition than would otherwise have been necessary.