Personal Injury Solicitor

If you have suffered injuries, or illness, through no fault of your own, you may be entitled to compensation.

In order to ensure that you are fairly compensated for your injuries, it is essential that you instruct a solicitor with extensive experience in the area of personal injury cases. Brigid O’Donnell of Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors has spent the last fifteen years working exclusively in the area of medical negligence and personal injury cases. Brigid is based in Cashel, Tipperary but has offices in Clonmel, Tipperary and Cork City. Brigid facilitates remote consultations and is available to meet clients at a time and place convenient to them.

Frequently Asked Questions

A personal injury claim involves a claim for compensation for injury, loss and damage due to an accident which is not your fault.

Brigid O’Donnell, Solicitor, a native of Cashel, Tipperary, specialises in personal injury and medical negligence cases.

Brigid operates from office facilities in Clonmel, Tipperary and Cork City but represents clients nationwide. Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors facilitate remote consultations and Brigid is available to meet with clients at a time and place convenient to them.

Brigid has successfully recovered compensation for clients who have suffered injuries -ranging from minor to life changing and catastrophic injuries- due to accidents caused by negligence, or fault, on the part of a third party.

  • Road Traffic Accidents
    Brigid O’Donnell, Solicitor, has successfully recovered compensation for drivers, passengers, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists who suffered injury due to road traffic collisions arising due to the fault of another. Generally speaking, claims for compensation are paid out by the insurance company on record for the driver at fault. However, if the other driver is uninsured, or untraced, the claim involves the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland and certain procedural requirements must be met. A failure to meet these requirements will result in an adverse outcome for your case.
  • Workplace accidents
    Brigid O’Donnell, Solicitor, has successfully recovered compensation for clients who have suffered injury due to workplace accidents. There is a duty on all employers for employees. Employers must provide appropriate training, supervision, proper machinery/equipment and a safe work environment. Where employers fail to do so and a person suffers injury due to negligence on the part of their employer, or on the part of a fellow employee, they may have grounds for compensation. Employer liability cases can be contentious and it is essential that you instruct a solicitor who has experience with this area of law. It is likely that liability will be denied. Brigid O’Donnell, Solicitor, has sufficient experience to ensure your case has the best prospect of success.
  • Injuries arising in a public or private place
    If you suffer injuries in a public or private place due to negligence on the part of another- for example: a slip on a wet floor, or a trip due to a defective surface; you may have grounds for compensation. Brigid O’Donnell of Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors has successfully recovered compensation for clients who have suffered injuries ranging from minor injuries to serious, life changing injuries due to accidents arising on both public and private property.

Generally speaking, a claim for compensation must be initiated by lodging an application with the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (P.I.A.B ) within two years of the date you suffered injury. Where a claim is not lodged within the prescribed timeframe, it is open to the Defendant to argue that the claim for compensation is statute barred. In those circumstances, compensation would not be payable even if liability is established. There are some exceptions to this two-year time frame; for example, in the case of minors (those aged under the age of 18.) In the case of minors, the two-year timeframe runs from the date of the person’s eighteenth birthday, rather than from the date of injury. However, if you are minded to initiate a personal injury claim, it is important that you consult a solicitor sooner rather than later so that all necessary measures can be taken to protect your interests and bring about the best possible outcome for you. If you believe you may have grounds for a personal injury claim, Brigid O’Donnell will make herself available to meet with you, remotely, or in person at a time and place convenient to you to discuss your concerns.

The Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) is the independent statutory body responsible for assessing personal injury claims, with the exception of medical negligence claims, in Ireland.

There is no obligation on a claimant to instruct a solicitor. However, PIAB will not offer you legal advice. If you have submitted a claim to PIAB yourself and you now wish to seek legal advice, contact Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors to arrange a consultation, remotely, or in person at a time and place convenient to you.

A road traffic accident, or collision, is a very frightening event which can have catastrophic consequences. Data compiled by the RSA (Road Safety Authority) revealed that a total of 155 people sadly lost their lives due to road traffic collisions in Ireland in 2022.

If you have been involved in a road traffic accident, you should:

  • Ensure the safety and wellbeing of everybody who has been involved in the collision. The first priority is obviously to seek medical attention for anyone who has been injured.
  • Exchange details with the other driver(s)- take note of their names, addresses, registration numbers and insurance details. It is a criminal offence to leave the scene of an accident without exchanging details.
  • Always contact the Gardai to report the accident.
  • It may be that the Gardai cannot attend at the scene and the cars need to be moved from the location of the accident. If this is the case, take photographs of the aftermath of the accident, as it occurred. Take photographs of the damage to your car and the other car(s).
  • Take details of the names, addresses and telephone details of independent witnesses.
  • Take details of the investigating Garda if applicable.
  • Contact your own insurance company to report the accident.
  • Contact the other driver(s) insurance company to report the accident if you are not at fault
  • If liability is contested and you believe that the other driver is responsible for the collision, contact a solicitor urgently for legal advice.
  • If you have suffered injuries due to a road traffic accident which occurred due to fault on the part of another driver, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors to discuss your options.
PIAB do not offer legal advice to Claimants. The submission of a claim to PIAB involves the completion of specific paperwork. While Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors have ample experience in the completion of the paperwork necessary to lodge your application with PIAB, you will likely do so on one occasion. An error in respect of the paperwork can be so serious that it might result in a situation whereby you might not be compensated for your injuries- either appropriately, or at all- and might even result in criminal charges being brought against you. Many people find the process stressful, Brigid’s clients have commended her for making the process as stress free as possible, while keeping them updated every step of the way.

Understandably, one of the primary concerns of a client contemplating a potential claim for compensation, is the issue of costs and how these costs are calculated etc. Many solicitors operate on a ‘no foal no fee’ basis for personal injuries cases. The Law Society has strict rules in place regarding advertising and these prohibit any solicitor from advertising their services as no win no fee. This term can also be very misleading. Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors provide very clear advices, at the outset, regarding the likely outlay involved in taking a claim. Outlay is the term used to describe monies paid out to third parties to bring a claim- stamp duty on court documents, experts’ report fees, experts’ court attendance fees, etc. We will also provide clear details regarding the manner in which legal fees are calculated and the circumstances in which a person will be responsible for legal fees. We will also provide clear advices regarding the consequences of an unsuccessful litigation case for the Plaintiff. We will then provide a written copy of these advices to all clients. In contentious business a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.

Compensation is calculated under two broad headings: general damages and special damages. The term general damages refers to compensation for past and future pain and suffering. When calculating general damages, both PIAB (The Personal Injuries Assessment Board) and the Courts refer to the Personal Injuries Guidelines – https://www.piab.ie/eng/injury-guidelines/
Special damages refer to ‘out of pocket expenses’ directly incurred as a result of the accident. Examples of special damages include: loss of earnings, GP visit fees and physiotherapy fees. Brigid O’Donnell Solicitors will ensure that all aspects of your losses are properly documented and that you are appropriately compensated.

No. While many straightforward claims involving minor injuries can be settled within the PIAB process, many cases cannot be settled without the issuing of court proceedings. It is important to note that a PIAB assessment of damages does not equate to an offer. An Order to Pay only issues if the assessment of damages is accepted by both the Claimant and the Respondent. Alternatively, an authorisation issues and in order to recover compensation, it is necessary to issue court proceedings. It is not unusual for a respondent to consent to assessment by PIAB and to then reject the assessment and fully contest liability. The PIAB paperwork then forms part of the evidence in the case and an error contained within that paperwork may have very serious consequences for the case.

*In contentious business a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.

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If you have suffered injury, loss and damage due to an accident,
contact Brigid to discuss your options.

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