Keogh v O'Keeffe (Approved)

Factual and Procedural Background

On 27 September 2018, the Plaintiff was driving his vehicle when he was rear-ended by a vehicle driven by the Defendant, who admitted liability for the accident. Post-collision, the Plaintiff's car sustained damage including a broken rear wheel stub axle and chassis damage, which was repaired but later led the Plaintiff to replace the vehicle. The Plaintiff, having changed legal representation twice, ultimately conducted his trial as a litigant in person with assistance. He claimed a neck injury with neurological symptoms primarily affecting his right upper limb, for which he underwent cervical decompression and fusion surgery in September 2020. The Defendant did not call evidence. The Plaintiff's medical history included a significant stroke in 2003, resulting in residual neurological symptoms and disability, but no claim for loss of earnings was made. The Plaintiff also alleged an untreated abdominal hernia, but this was not supported by evidence or pleadings and was disregarded. The Plaintiff exhibited multiple medico-legal reports and transferred the proceedings from the Circuit Court to the High Court on the basis that the injuries warranted higher quantum jurisdiction. The Defendant disputed causation of the right-sided symptoms and consequent surgery. The case proceeded on the basis that the Plaintiff bore the onus of proof to establish causation and damages on the balance of probabilities.

Legal Issues Presented

1. Whether the Plaintiff’s right-sided neurological symptoms and subsequent cervical surgery were caused by the motor vehicle accident.
2. The appropriate quantum of damages for the Plaintiff’s injuries, considering pre-existing conditions and the nature of the injury.

Arguments of the Parties

Defendant's Arguments

• The Plaintiff suffered a moderate soft tissue neck injury with left-sided symptoms exacerbating pre-existing degenerative changes, which resolved within approximately two years.
• The right-sided symptoms and surgery were not caused by the accident and therefore damages for those are not recoverable.
• The Plaintiff’s injury falls within the “moderate whiplash” category in the Book of Quantum with a suggested damages range of €20,400 to €30,200.
• The case lies in the middle of the Book of Quantum range, and no adjustment for inflation or additional aggravating factors is warranted beyond a moderate award.

Plaintiff's Arguments

• The Plaintiff asserted that his injury was right-sided from the outset, with symptoms radiating to the right upper limb, necessitating surgery.
• The Plaintiff denied ever complaining of left-sided symptoms despite medical records indicating otherwise, attributing discrepancies to alleged solicitor misconduct.
• The Plaintiff emphasized his vulnerability due to pre-existing medical conditions and the distress caused by the injury.

Table of Precedents Cited

Court's Reasoning and Analysis

The court carefully examined the evidence, particularly the medical reports and testimony, to determine causation and quantum. It noted a significant inconsistency between the Plaintiff’s claim of right-sided symptoms from the outset and the contemporaneous medical records, which consistently recorded left-sided symptoms in the months following the accident. The Plaintiff’s own medical reports, including those from his GP, emergency medicine consultant, and orthopaedic surgeons, initially documented left-sided pain and neurological symptoms, with right-sided symptoms only emerging much later.

The court found the Plaintiff’s denial of left-sided symptoms and assertions of solicitor misconduct insufficient to overcome the weight of the contemporaneous medical evidence. The testimony of the orthopaedic surgeon who performed the cervical surgery was pivotal; he altered his opinion at trial, stating that the right-sided symptoms and surgery were not causally linked to the accident due to lack of temporal proximity and continuous symptomatology.

Consequently, the court accepted the Defendant’s submission that only the moderate soft tissue injury with left-sided symptoms was caused by the accident and that the right-sided symptoms and surgery were unrelated. The court applied the Book of Quantum guidelines for moderate whiplash injuries, considering the Plaintiff’s pre-existing vulnerability and the two-year recovery period, and awarded damages accordingly.

Special damages for surgery and future surgery costs related to right-sided symptoms were disallowed as causation was not established. Minor special damages were accepted on an agreed basis.

Holding and Implications

The court’s final decision was to award the Plaintiff general damages of €37,500 and special damages of €1,300, totaling €38,800.

Holding: The Plaintiff’s right-sided symptoms and surgery were not caused by the accident, and damages are limited to a moderate soft tissue injury with left-sided symptoms.

Implications: The decision directly affects the parties by limiting the Plaintiff’s recoverable damages to those injuries causally linked to the accident, rejecting claims for right-sided symptoms and associated surgery. No new legal precedent was established; the court applied established principles relating to causation, evidential weight, and the use of the Book of Quantum in assessing damages.