Lawford Kidd's Blog

In the recent case of Joseph McCarn and Others v The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills [2014] CSOH 121, the Court of Session has provided guidance on fatal awards in Scotland.

The children of the late Mr McCarn, who died in 2009, aged 69, from mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure during the course of his employment in the shipbuilding industry raised a claim under section 4(3)(b) of the Damages (Scotland) Act 2011 - which allows for compensation to be awarded to relatives for loss of financial support, distress and anxiety, grief and sorrow, and loss of ‘society and guidance’.

In making the decision, Lord Bannatyne referred to the case of Hamilton v Ferguson Transport, but disagreed with the proposition made in that case that there must be a pattern in jury awards before a judge can attach weight them. Instead, Lord Bannatyne considered the unreported case of Kelly v UCS from 29 July 2012, a decision that was reached using a completely different approach to other recent cases.  

In a judgment delivered last week, Lord Woolman awarded three grandchildren significant damages for the death of their grandfather, Russell Stuart.

In 2011, Mr Stuart died of injuries sustained in a car accident in Aberdeen. Although the personal injury claims of his widow and three adult children were settled, no agreement could be reached about claims made on behalf of his three grandchildren, two of whom were aged 5 and 3 at the time of the accident, and another not born until five months after the accident.

In the case (Stuart & Ors v Reid [2014] CSOH 117A), the woman driving the car and her insurance company contended that the two older grandchildren receive £4,000 each and the youngest £2,000, while Mr Stuart's family sought £25,000 for each child. The court found a middle ground between the proposed amounts, although admittedly far more in favour of the grandchildren.

A construction worker from Edinburgh has been awarded compensation worth several million pounds after he was injured on a hospital building site in Newcastle in 2006, reports the Scotsman.

A dressage rider with a promising career ahead of him is suing for damages after his legs were badly damaged in a car crash, reports the Telegraph.

A Court of Session judge has ruled that a forestry worker can proceed with his damages claim against the Forestry Commission, reports the Scotsman.