Northern Irish lawyers are eagerly watching the outcome of a government announcement in the Republic of Ireland that a new Personal Injuries Assessment Board is to be established on a statutory basis as a means, in the first instance, of settling personal injury claims arising out of accidents at work. The move is the start of a trend towards taking the administration of claims out of the hands of lawyers.
Indeed, the Irish Government is clearly taking the lead from the statutory workers’ compensation schemes already in force in some US states. Although the aforesaid initiative will in the first instance be restricted to quantum only employer’s liability claims, the Irish Government has made it clear that the ultimate aim will be to expand the scheme to cover personal injuries sustained in road traffic accidents.
