The restaurant sector has hit out at a “spiraling claims culture” after the High Court awarded €20,000 in damages to a woman who banged her knee against the leg of a table while sitting down to dinner.

A €20,000 High Court damages award to a woman who banged her knee against the leg of a table while sitting down to dinner will have serious repercussions for hoteliers and restaurateurs.

Four men arrested after a drugs seizure on Dublin's Northside will appear in court this morning.

The trial of a Meath resident accused of possessing a firearm and assisting armed robbers has begun at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.