Posted: August 5th, 2016
A Dublin boy, who was scarred after an injury in a creche as toddler, has received a settlement of compensation for his injury.
In July 2007, when Calum Lawless was just three years old, he was playing at the Happy Days Creche in Dublin. As the little boy was running around, he tripped over uneven flooring and fell on his face. As a result, he was bleeding very heavily from a three-centimetre laceration above his eye. Workers at the nursery brought him to the VHI Swiftcare Clinic at Dublin City University, and his wound was closed with steri-strips.
Calum’s eye did not open for nearly a week after the accident, and his face remained bruised for many months. Now aged twelve, Calum still has a scar above his eye from the injury. The location means that it is uncorrectable with plastic surgery.
Lorraine Lawless, Calum’s mother, consulted a solicitor and proceeded to claim for personal injury compensation on her son’s behalf. In the claim, which was made against the Happy Days Creche, accused the facility of breaching its duty of care towards her son by neglecting to provide a safe environment in which he could play.
The Dublin creche admitted their guilt and offered the boy a settlement of compensation worth €45,000. However, as the claim was made on behalf of a minor, the settlement had to be approved by a judge.
The case was heard at the Civil Circuit Court in Dublin earlier this week, where Mr Justice James O’Donohoe was detailed the nature of Calum’s injury. Judge O’Donohoe proceeded to approve the settlement of compensation.
Categories: Child injury News
