Vicarious Liability
McCarthy + Co. is a long-established firm of solicitors with considerable experience in the field of personal injury claims, including vicarious liability claims. Whether you wish to bring a claim against your employer for an injury at work, or you simply require further information on the process involved, please feel free to get in touch with our expert team.
Get in touch with us today using one of the contact methods on this page.
What is Vicarious Liability?
In Irish common law, employers are vicariously liable for their employees’ acts (or omissions) that occur during the course of employment. The principle of vicarious liability is enshrined in the Equal Status Act, 2000.
In addition, the Employment Equality Acts 1998-2011 stipulate that employers are vicariously liable for discriminatory acts of employees, regardless of whether these are carried out with or without the employer’s knowledge or permission, unless it can be proven that reasonable steps were taken by the employer to prevent such discriminatory acts from occurring.
A good example of vicarious liability is the case of Lynch vs Binnacle Limited, a summary of which can be found on our blog here.
So, what does it all mean? Put briefly, the legal doctrine imposes liability on employers for any wrongdoings by their employees (while carrying out their duties of employment) that lead to personal injury.
In practical terms, this legal principle can be extremely useful for those who have suffered a personal injury or accident while at work, offering as it does an effective means of obtaining adequate compensation. Clearly, it is generally the case that the employee who caused the accident or injury will have fewer resources than the company s/he is working for.
If you have suffered an accident or personal injury while at work and it wasn’t your fault, you may be able to bring a compensation claim against your employer on the basis of vicarious liability. You are advised to seek legal advice as soon as you can, for the best possible chance of a successful settlement of a claim resulting from negligence on the part of your employer.
About McCarthy + Co
An injury sustained at work can have considerable long-term effects on your health and hugely affect your quality of life. Irish law offers protection to those who have suffered a personal injury that was someone else’s fault.
For any vicarious liability claim, McCarthy + Co. are the legal experts to have on your side. With over 30 years’ specialist experience in dealing with a wide range of personal injury claims and having worked on numerous cases and settled claims successfully, our team of personal injury solicitors provides a wealth of advice and guidance for workplace injuries.
We are a family-run business and pride ourselves on offering impartial, honest, helpful legal advice in all matters. From our offices in Dublin and Cork, we have worked with clients across the whole of Ireland.
Contact Us
Contact our friendly expert team today to start the process of making a vicarious liability claim against your employer or gather more information. You can call us on 1800 390 555 to discuss your case with an experienced member of staff who will advise on your options. Alternatively, please feel free to email your query to info@mccarthy.ie and we will get back to you as quickly as we can.
In contentious business, a legal practitioner shall not charge any amount in respect of legal costs expressed as a percentage or proportion of any damages (or other moneys) that may become payable to his or her client or purport to set out the legal costs to be charged to a junior counsel as a specified percentage or proportion of the legal costs paid to a senior counsel. A legal practitioner shall not without the prior written agreement of his or her client deduct or appropriate any amount in respect of legal costs from the amount of any damages or moneys that become payable to the client in respect of legal services that the legal practitioner provided to the client.