Young skateboarder awarded €240,000 in claim against motorcyclist

A YOUNG skateboarder who rolled out in front of a passing motorbike suffered head injuries and a broken leg in the collision was awarded €240,000 in compensation yesterday.

Luke Byrne of Barnavarra Crescent, Ballyvolane, Cork, was aged five at the time of the accident near his home.

Engineers’ estimates of the reaction time available to the motorcyclist put it at one second at most and possibly as little as seven tenths of a second.

Dr John O’Mahony said at the High Court in Cork yesterday that he was recommending acceptance of the offer made to the plaintiff on behalf of the defendant Kevin Myers, of Ballygibbon, Blarney, Co Cork.

Mr Justice Frank Clarke said that he was approving the offer, which will now be lodged in court until the plaintiff, who is now aged 10, reaches the age of 18.

The judge said there was a definite risk in letting the case go to trial.

“One would have to factor in the possibility that it could be completely lost,” said Mr Justice Clarke.

Dr O’Mahony said the plaintiff, who brought the case through his mother Veronica Byrne, “was on a skateboard and he came from between two parked cars. The bottom line is that there was nothing the motorcyclist could have done, the case could have been lost”.

Mr Clarke praised the child’s parents for everything they had done to ensure their son received the best medical treatment.

Dr O’Mahony said the most serious aspect of his injuries was the cognitive impairment, which was potentially serious at the time. Luke Byrne was in hospital for three and a half weeks after the accident in December 2002.

The senior counsel said that while the potential consequences were serious, the young boy had done extremely well. He is now in fifth class in school and playing midfield in soccer.

The judge was asked to allow payment out of a small fraction of the award so that Luke and his family could go to Disneyland and he said that was appropriate in the circumstances.