Posted: June 11th, 2021
At the High Court a 22-year-old woman has settled her legal action, taken due to he traumatic brain injury she sustained when a car her father was driving her in crashed, for €15m.
The female in question, Monika Kazinska, was aged 12 when the accident occurred two days before Christmas in 2011. She was sitting in the front passenger seat of the car and they had just taken her friend home following a sleepover. In a court case held in 2011 her father, Marcin Rafal Kazinski of River Glen , Cappoquinn, Co Waterford pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm and damage. A breath sample taken following the accident indicated that Mr Kazinski was just over three times above the legal limit. He informed that Court that he had not consumed alcohol on the day of the accident but had drunk heavily the previous evening. The accident took place at 12.30pm on December 23rd, 2011.
Monika Kazinska, River Glen, Cappoquin, County Waterford took the car crash injury compensation action via her mother Marzena Kazinska sued in the High Court her father Marcin Rafal Kazinski of the same address who was the driver of the car in which she was travelling on December 23rd, 2011 near Cappoquin, which crashed into a different vehicle.
After being found guilty of the offences Mr Kazinski received a four-year suspended sentence along with hours community service and a 10-year driving disqualification – this was reduced to three years on appeal.
The court was told by Monika’s legal representatives that she sustained horrific head injuries as a result of the road traffic accident. Counsel said: “This is an extremely sad case. It involved catastrophic injuries to Monika who was travelling as a passenger in a car driven by her father, who is the defendant in the case”.
The car that Moika was travelling in crashed into a truck on the opposite side of the road. The Court was informed that there was a failure to stop, swerve, slow down or in any other way to avoid the incident by using the brakes in sufficient time or with sufficient force. After the accident Momika was taken to hospital where she was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury. She spent two weeks in the intensive care unit after being intubated and ventilated and was then moved to the National Rehabilitation Hospital in July 2012. She is now confined to a wheelchair.
Following the defence team arguing that there was an element of alleged contributory negligence to be considered on the part of the young girl as she was not wearing a seatbelt, the court ruled that there was a duty of care on the father to ensure that his daughter was wearing her seatbelt.
As she was giving her approval to to the €15m road traffic accident compensation settlement, President of the High Court Justice Mary Irvine commented that she hopes that this settlement will provide Monika with the life and dignity she is entitled to.
Categories: Passengers in Car Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
