Bringing a professional negligence claim in Ireland
To establish a claim for professional negligence in Ireland, the client must prove the following elements:
Duty of care: The professional owed the client a duty of care, which means that the professional had a legal obligation to provide services with reasonable care, skill, and diligence.
Breach of duty: The professional breached their duty of care by failing to provide the required standard of care, skill, or diligence. This can include acts of commission, such as providing incorrect advice, or acts of omission, such as failing to take necessary steps.
Causation: The client must show that the breach of duty caused them harm or loss. They must demonstrate that, if the professional had met the required standard of care, the harm or loss would not have occurred.
Damages: The client must have suffered damages as a result of the breach of duty, such as financial loss, physical injury, or emotional distress.
Professional negligence claims can be complex and require the expertise of a solicitor who specializes in this area of law. The claimant must provide evidence to support their claim, and the professional may dispute the claim or argue that they met the required standard of care.
Professional negligence can occur in a variety of professions, such as accounting, engineering, law, architecture or surveyors, medicine, bank, insurance brokers, financial advisors, pension advisors and other advisors in relation to financial related products. In order to succeed in a claim of professional negligence, the applicant bringing the claim (the plaintiff) must typically show that they suffered harm as a result of the professional’s failure to meet the required standard of care.
Clients who suffer harm or loss due to the negligence of a professional may be entitled to compensation. The amount of damages awarded will depend on the circumstances of the case, including the extent of the harm or loss and the impact it has had on the client’s life.
Examples of potential professional negligence include:
- You purchased a financial product that was miss-sold to you by a financial advisor
- The tax you owe was miscalculated by an accountant
- An important deadline is missed by a solicitor
- A defective plan produced by an architect that comes to to light
It can be difficult to determine if a situation qualifies as professional negligence, so it is important to seek legal guidance as soon as possible.