Glossary of Personal Injury Terms

If you’re wondering at any stage in the course of the Injuries Board process what a word means or refers to, you can just look here to find out.

 Assessment: the amount of compensation which the Injuries Board determines a claimant to be entitled to.
Authorisation: a document issued by the Injuries Board which is required before court proceedings for personal injuries (other than medical negligence) can be
issued.
​Award: an order made by a court compelling a defendant to pay a plaintiff compensation for personal injury.
Barrister: a lawyer who specialises in representing individuals in court (also referred to as ‘counsel’).
​Book of Quantum: A collection of a range of values for various categories of injury published by the Injuries Board as an aid in the assessment of the amount of general damages to which a claimant may be entitled.
Claimant: a person who has suffered personal injury and who is claiming compensation from those at fault for causing the injury. If the Injuries Board issues an authorisation this person will be referred to as the ‘plaintiff’ in the proceedings that will issue subsequently.
Compensation: a sum of money paid to a claimant to compensate them for the personal injury which they have suffered.
Counsel: a lawyer who specialises in representing individuals in court (also referred to as a ‘barrister’). Data protection request: a request for copies of personal information held by a private individual or company made under the Data Protection Acts 1988 and 2003.
Date of knowledge: the date upon which an injured person will be deemed to possess sufficient
knowledge to allow time to run against their claim for the purposes of the Statute of Limitations.
Defendant: the person in a court action who is defending a claim that they are liable to pay another
person (referred to as the ‘plaintiff’) compensation for personal injuries. The defendant will be referred to as the ‘respondent’ in any Injuries Board application that precedes the court action.
Forensic engineer: a professional engineer who is experienced in giving evidence in court and who
specialises in inspecting accident scenes for the purpose of identifying and preserving evidence and proving legal liability.
Form A: the Injuries Board’s standard form to be filled out by a claimant which sets out the particulars of the accident, injury and loss.
Form B: the Injuries Board’s standard form to be filled out by a claimant’s doctor setting out the extent of the injuries which the claimant has sustained.
Freedom of information request: a request for copies of personal information held by a Government body or agency made under the Freedom of Information Acts 1997 and 2003.
General damages: compensation for pain and suffering, loss of amenity and opportunities, future
disadvantages in life, and inability to carry out day-today tasks and sports, hobbies or pass times (to be contrasted with special damages).
Injuries Board: the name given to the Government body which makes assessments of personal
injury claims. When it was first established in 2004 the Injuries Board was called the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) but it was rebranded subsequently.
Judiciary: The judicial branch of government which comprises the Judges of the Supreme, High,
Circuit and District Courts. 
Jurisdiction: the range between the minimum and maximum amount of money which a court can award for compensation.
Legal disability: any physical or mental disability which is sufficiently serious that the law deems the Statute of Limitations to be placed on hold as against the person suffering from the disability.
Letter of claim: the initiating letter which an injured person sends to the person whom they believe to be responsible for causing their injury (also referred to as a ‘section 8 letter’).
Liability: the obligation imposed by law on one person to compensate another person for the personal injuries which they have sustained.
Loss of earnings: the amount of wages or other remuneration which an injured person has had to forego due to being unable to work as a consequence of their injuries.
Medical negligence: professional negligence by act or omission by a doctor or other health care provider in which the treatment provided falls below the accepted standard of practice in the medical community and causes injury or death to a patient.
Medical report: a doctor’s report setting out the results of a medical examination of a patient which will include a description of the injuries sustained, the treatment received to date, and a prognosis as to how the injuries are likely to develop in the future (also referred to as a ‘medico-legal report’).
Negligence: conduct that falls below the standards of behavior established by law for the protection of others against unreasonable risk of harm.
Next friend: a person who brings legal proceedings on behalf of another person who is not in a position to do so because they are a minor or are not mentally competent.
No-foal-no-fee: another term for no-win-no-fee.
No-win-no-fee: an agreement between client and solicitor where it is agreed that the solicitor will not be entitled to recover their legal fees unless the client is successful in securing compensation for their injuries.
Order to pay: A document issued by the Injuries Board after an assessment has been accepted by both a claimant and a respondent which imposes a legal obligation on the respondent to pay the amount of the assessment made by the Injuries Board to the claimant.
Periodic payment order: a court order made to compensate injured parties in cases of catastrophic
injuries where long-term or permanent care will be required. Compensation is not made by way of a single lump sum but is made by several payments which are kept under review by the court by reference to the injured person’s ongoing condition.
Personal injury: a legal term for an injury to the body, either physical or psychological, as opposed to an injury to property.
Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB):
the name originally given to the Government body which makes assessments of personal injury claims when it was first set up. It has since been relabelled ‘the Injuries Board.’
Plaintiff: the person in court proceedings who is seeking compensation against another person (referred to as the ‘defendant’) for personal injuries. In the Injuries Board application which precedes the court action the plaintiff will be referred to as the ‘claimant.’
Quantum: a measure of the amount of damages a claimant is entitled to.
Respondent: the legal entity (which could be a natural person, company or State body) against whom a person who has been injured is claiming compensation in an Injuries Board application. If the matter is not concluded by way of an Injuries Board assessment, the respondent will be referred to as the ‘defendant’ in any subsequent court proceedings that are issued.
Section 8: a provision contained in the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 obliging an injured person to send a letter to each of the people whom they believe to be responsible for their injuries within two months of the date of the accident.
Section 26: a provision contained in the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 which provides that if a
judge believes that a plaintiff has given false or exaggerated evidence about their injuries the judge
must dismiss the plaintiff’s claim.
Section 50: a provision in the Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003 which causes the Statute of Limitations to be put on hold while a claim is being assessed by the Injuries Board.
Section 51A: a provision in the Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003 (inserted by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Amendment) Act 2007) which means that if a claimant rejects an assessment which a respondent has accepted, the costs incurred by the claimant in the subsequent court proceedings will not be allowed unless the amount of the court award is
greater than the amount of the assessment.
Section 51B: a provision in the Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003 (inserted by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Amendment) Act 2007) which means that a claimant will not be allowed the amount incurred by them in applying to the Injuries Board for assessment as a cost to the paid by the defendant in the subsequent court proceedings.
Section 68: a provision contained in the Solicitors (Amendment) Act 1994 which imposes a legal
obligation on a solicitor to provide their client with written details of how they intend to charge for their legal services as soon as possible after they have begun acting for the client.
Special damages: Damages that compensate the plaintiff for quantifiable monetary losses arising from an injury such as medical bills, repairs and replacement of property, loss of wages and other damages (to be contrasted with general damages).
Statute barred: the extinguishment of a legal claim due to a failure to commence the claim within the time period allowed by the Statute of Limitations.Statute of Limitations: a law which sets down
time limits within which legal claims must be commenced if they are not to become extinguished.
Statutory duty: a duty of care not to cause harm or damage which is imposed by the passing of legislation by the State.
Settlement: an agreement between an injured person and the person who has caused the injury which determines what compensation the injured person is to receive.
Vicarious liability: a legal rule that imposes responsibility upon one person for the failure of another with whom the person has a special relationship (such as parent and child, employer and employee, or owner of vehicle and driver).