Results 621-640 of 1,683 for speaker:Derek McDowell

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: Yes.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: Are expenses recoverable if, for example, a person goes to a solicitor who does some preliminary work and then suggests that the person must go to the assessment board?

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: That may be true. However, the section explicitly accepts the principle that expenses incurred in mounting the claim are recoverable. The Minister seems to suggest that only decent expenses are recoverable and not the indecent expense of getting advice from a lawyer.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: The Minister seems to suggest that as a matter of principle it is not reasonable to cover any type of legal costs.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: The Minister would not pay them either, if she could get away with it.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: I accept the general principle, but we can take the principle of lawyer bashing too far. It is still likely that one of the first ports of call by someone involved in an accident will be the legal profession for legal advice. To say we should not pay this as a matter of principle because it is going down the slippery slope of making it a court related or legal process rather than a claim or...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: When a person is injured at work, he or she does not appreciate that liability is an issue in many cases. Many people do not realise that we have a fault based system which requires a person to establish that the employer or someone driving a car is at fault before he or she can recover money for injuries sustained. Many people do not know such basic facts which we take for granted. To say,...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: I will not delay the House, but I want to rebut the suggestion by the Tánaiste that I am challenging the premise of the Bill – I am not doing so. I accept the premise of the Bill. There is a need for a simpler, quicker process. Many of the criticisms the Tánaiste has levelled at the current system are entirely justified and fair. I am only seeking to ensure one thing. There will still be...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: We dealt with that earlier, a Leas-Chathaoirligh. I withdraw my opposition. Question put and agreed to. SECTION 49.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: In a sense I will speak against my own amendment, which seeks to shorten the time within which the board must deal with an assessment. Nine months would be perfectly adequate for this, but I have a difficulty with one aspect, which is why I tabled my amendment. As matters stand, section 49 provides that if something is not dealt with within 15 months, having been prolonged in the first...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: Can we specify that in the legislation? At present, section 49(5) states that if the assessment is not made before the date specified, unless the claimant consents in writing to the board continuing to deal with the matter, there is an authorisation to go to court. Perhaps we should specify that the board will only seek the consent of the claimant in exceptional circumstances.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: I want to prevent the assessor asking for prolongation as a matter of routine. At the Freedom of Information Commission, for example, the time limits are meaningless because the consent of the person seeking the information is forever sought to prolong the time. The claimant in that case knows well that if he or she does not consent, the request will be refused.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: One of the ironic benefits of the current system is that because it takes so long to get the case to court, it is unlikely anything will happen subsequently that will require a reapplication to court. However, I do not think this was intended. If the speed with which the PIAB deals with cases is such that some effects of the injury have not become apparent, the case Senator Mansergh makes is...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: Most cases have full and final settlement. This is intended to be the end of the matter unless one has a settlement that allows for review. This is extremely unlikely as insurance companies would not agree to it. The court case is final in all cases unless it specifically states otherwise.

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: Is the Minister aware whether her colleague, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, intends to shorten the period provided for in the Statute of Limitations? The heads of the Courts (Amendment) Bill were published during the summer and it indicated that the intention was to shorten the period. Is this still the case?

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: I move amendment No. 32: In page 30, subsection (1), line 29, after "as" to insert "Bord Measúnaithe Díobhálacha Pearsanta or in the English language". While I confess that I did not draft this, it is our best effort to translate "Personal Injuries Assessment Board" into the first national language. We came up with "Bord Measúnaithe Díobhálacha Pearsanta" and I challenge the Tánaiste's...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: Does the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs intend to provide that the Official Languages Act applies to this area? Will it be incumbent on the board to have staff available that can deal with people using the Irish language?

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: I invite the Minister to make some comments on the preparation of the book of quantum. This is the only reference in the Bill to the book of quantum and it does not spell out in any great detail what it does. It only states that it will contain general guidelines as to the amount that may be awarded. The impression is sometimes created that these are relatively simple things and in certain...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: I move amendment No. 33: In page 31, subsection (1), line 43, to delete "and the chief executive". The amendment proposes that the chief executive, while he or she should be entitled to attend a board meeting, would not be a voting member of the board. This issue has arisen with other State boards. It is a normal provision that the board directs and the chief executive is an employee who acts...

Seanad: Personal Injuries Assessment Board Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (24 Nov 2003)

Derek McDowell: The Tánaiste correctly anticipated the point I was about to make. I had in mind a particular State board whose chairman was also its chief executive officer. It is now generally accepted that this practice should be avoided on State boards. In a sense, we are seeking to go a step further by ensuring the chief executive officer could not be a voting member of the board and would be permitted...