Skip to main content

Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin

Trinity Menu Trinity Search



itigation: School of Law, Trinity College Dublin

Tort Litigation 2012: All the Recent Developments

 

Date: Saturday, 17 November 2012

Venue: Synge Theatre, Arts Building, Trinity College Dublin

 

About the Conference

In 2012, there have been highly important developments in relation to damages in tort litigation. The present economic climate has reshaped the courts’ approach in such areas as professional negligence, the changing values of agricultural land in fatal accident claims and delayed sales in Hedley Byrne-type cases. There have been significant decisions on nervous shock, the Book of Quantum and the future accommodation needs of seriously injured plaintiffs.

New remedies under the Defamation Act 2009 have also been tested in the courts. The Supreme Court has handed down a crucial judgment on the operation of the Statute of Limitations in different types of negligence claims. In 2012, there have also been important decisions on employers’ liability and breach of statutory duty.

Practitioners need to have access to all of these recent developments.

The conference organised by the School of Law of Trinity College Dublin on Saturday, 17 November 2012 addresses all of the new issues. The team of lecturers, Bryan McMahon, William Binchy, Neville Cox, Ciaran Craven and Des Ryan, has particular expertise in tort law.

Questions to be addressed:

  • What are the implications  of the Supreme Court decision  in Gallagher v ACC Bank Plc [2012] IESC 35 for calculating the limitation period for negligence claims involving  pure economic loss or property damage?

  • How did Charleton J interpret sections 2(6) and 8 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 in a claim by an employee in Quinn v Bradbury [2012] IEHC 106?

  • Why did Cooke J reject the claim for exemplary damages in Island Ferries Teoranta v Minister for Communications [2012] IEHC 256?

  • How did Hedigan J in Travers v Sunday Newspapers [2012] IEHC 185 respond to an application for orders under sections 14(1) and 14(2)(b) of the Defamation Act 2009?

  • Why did Hogan J make a 20% Reddy v Bates deduction when calculating future loss of earnings in Laffan v Quirke [2012] IEHC 250?

  • What did the most recent High Court judgments in negligence and related claims against solicitors decide?

  • How was the Dunne v National Maternity Hospital test for medical negligence applied by the Supreme Court in Kearney v McQuillan [2012] IESC 213 and by Quirke J in McGowan v O'Rourke [2012] IEHC 266?

  • What guidance on the discharge of the burden of proof in negligence litigation did Irvine Jgive in Connaughton v Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform [2012] IEHC 203?

  • Why did the plaintiff's claim for summary relief under section 34 of the Defamation Act 2009 fail in Lowry v Smyth [2012] IEHC 22?

  • Why did the Supreme Court in Coffey v Kavanagh [2012] IESC 19 make a finding of  contributory negligence in an employers' liability claim?

  • Rodgers v J.A.C.K.S Taverns Ltd [2012] IEHC 314, what had Peart J to say on the level of security required of public houses in quiet suburban areas?

  • How did the Supreme Court address the law on alleged Internet defamation in Coleman v MGN Lt

  • How did Cross J interpret the requirement for employers to make written risk assessments under section 19 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 in  Nyhan v Commissioner of An Garda Siochana [2012] IEHC 329?

  • Why did the employers' liability claim fail in Stackowski v Diamond Bar Ltd [2012] IEHC 301?

  • Why did Ryan J decline to make an order for further and better particulars in defamation proceedings in Griffin v Sunday Newspapers Ltd [2012] IEHC 132?

 

Programme

 

9:00 Registration  
9:30 Litigating under the Defamation Act 2009: Key Decisions in 2012 Prof. Neville Cox BL
10:00 Professional Negligence Claims Against Solicitors and Doctors: Developments in 2012 Dr. Ciaran Craven BL
10:30 Employers' Liability and Health and Safety Litigation in 2012 Dr. Des Ryan BL
11:00 Tea/Coffee Break  
11:20 The Supreme Court's New Approach to the Statute of Limitations in Tort Litigation William Binchy
11:50 Damages in Tort Litigation: The Key 2012 Decision The Hon. Mr. Justice Bryan McMahon
12:20 - 1:00 Questions and Discussion  

 

The right to substitute and rearrange lecture(rs)s is reserved.

Speaker

William Binchy is a practising barrister. He is co-author with the Hon. Mr. Justice Bryan McMahon of Irish Law of Torts, the fourth edition of which will be published in the next few weeks..

Dr. Neville Cox is a practising barrister, Associate Professor and a Fellow of Trinity College Dublin. He is author of, amongst other books, Defamation Law (2008), and co- author of Employment Law in Ireland (2009). He is Director of the Master of Laws degree programmes at Trinity.

Dr. Ciaran Craven is a practising barrister. He lectures in Medical Law on the LL.M. degree programme at Trinity College Dublin. He is the co-editor (with William Binchy) of Medical Negligence Litigation: Emerging Issues and The Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004: Implications for Personal Injury Litigation and co-author of Psychiatry and the Law (2nd ed., 2010). He is co-editor of the Quarterly Review of Tort Law.

"The Honorable Mr. Justice Bryan McMahon served as a Judge of the Circuit Court and High Court from 1999 to 2011. He is co-author of books on torts and European law. Previously he >was Professor of Law at University College Cork and was a partner in the firm of Houlihan and >Houlihan in Ennis.

Dr. Des Ryan is a practising barrister specialising in Employment Law and a Lecturer in Employment Law at Trinity College Dublin. Co-author of Employment Law in Ireland (2009),he has published widely on Employment Law in a number of journals, including the Employment Law Journal, and is the Co-Editor of the Employment Law Review (First Law) and the Employment Law correspondent for the Thomson Round Hall Annual Review of Irish Law. He advises on all aspects of employment litigation.

The right to substitute or rearrange lecture(r)s is reserved.

Reservations and Fees

Fees:*

150 euro per person

Group Rates (Euro): 270 for 2; 380 for 3; 480 for 4 and 560 for 5

Reduced Rates (Euro)*: 135

Members Rates (Euro)**:

Individuals - 120

Associates - 80

Corporate Group Rates - 215 for 2; 300 for 3; 380 for 4 and 450 for 5.

 

If you would like to attend more than one of our CPD conference programmes please see the booking form below.

* for barristers of five years standing or less and trainee solicitors.

** for members of the TCD CPD Conference Programme.

Fees inclusive of tea/coffee and lecture materials

Payment:

All Cheques should be made payable to TCD No. 1 Account and returned to the address below

Reservations:

Please complete the booking form and return to:

CPD Conference Programmes, School of Law,
House 39, Trinity College, Dublin 2

Contacts: Conference Reservations: Telephone Soraya or Catherine at +353 1 896 2772 / +353 1 896 2367;
Fax Number: (01) 677 0449; Email: lawevent@tcd.ie