The general rule is that claims must be made within two years of the date of the accident. However there are exceptions to that, namely (a) if the injured party is a minor then the two-year period starts on their 18th birthday (b) delayed knowledge of the injury, as it can often happen that the injury caused by the accident may not become apparent until some considerable time after the accident (c) if the injured party was incapacitated, for example, in a coma. It is important to note that the two-year period applies to the actual issue of proceedings and not contacting your solicitor.
When in discussion with your solicitor it is important not to exaggerate the injury, so the choice of court is important. If you take a case to the High Court (where the legal costs are high), if the award of damages is under the jurisdiction of the High Court then the court will only award legal costs on the Circuit Court scale. This will leave you with a shortfall in legal costs and it could in fact exceed the actual award. This happened in a recent case where the case was taken in the Circuit Court, the personal injury award to the plaintiff was €8,000 and the court awarded costs on the District Court scale which left the plaintiff with a legal bill more than the award (Nolan v. The County Registrar for the County of Waterford & Others [2024] IEHC 253). That case was appealed to the High Court by way of Judicial Review, but the High Court confirmed the decision that the award of legal costs on the lower court scale of fees was correct.
So, choosing the right court is especially important as is not to exaggerate the injury. Once proceedings are issued there is no time limit for a conclusion. It helps to have all your information, documents, witnesses, medical receipts, dates etc ready for the solicitor to proceed. It is possible the other side (defendant) will seek to delay the case, and this is a matter which your solicitor can attempt to fight back on but in reality, there is not a lot that can be done except in cases of excessive delays. So, be patient and follow the advice of your solicitor, it is in their interest too that the case is heard as soon as is possible.
