David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This group of amendments has been tabled for the purpose of ensuring that the provisions of the Bill in regard to periodic payment orders will apply to actions that are before the courts and have been the subject of interim orders for the payment of damages to the plaintiff. I have been informed by the State Claims Agency that there are 65 cases in respect of which interim orders have been made. All of these cases involved catastrophic injury to infants or wards of court. The Government wishes to make certain that the Bill will apply to these cases, as they are the very cases that need to be regularised in a formal PPO process following the enactment of this Bill. These cases have been adjourned for specific periods as the interim orders made provision for the care needs of the plaintiffs for a number of years, mostly two or three years. In the absence of legislation enabling periodic payment orders these cases have been made returnable to specific dates in the future. In making the orders for interim payments the Judiciary was cognisant of the fact that legislation in this area was forthcoming.

Amendment No. 1 inserts a new sub-paragraph into section 51L(2)(b). The purpose of this amendment is to make it clear that the court in considering whether a periodic payment order should be made must have regard to whether an interim order for the payment of damages to the plaintiff has been made and the amount of such damages. Amendments Nos. 2 to 4, inclusive, are consequential amendments arising from the insertion of the new provision provided for in amendment No. 1.

Amendment No. 6 inserts a new paragraph (b) in section 51O(2) to better reflect the intention that the Bill will apply to action where an interim order has been made. A new text at paragraph (b) no longer contains a reference to "a final decision" which means that subsection (2) can, therefore, be deleted. Amendment No. 5 is a technical amendment consequential on amendment No. 6.