If you reveal your secrets to the wind, you should not blame the wind for revealing them to the trees. ~Khalil Gibran, Sand and Foam
In the age of social media, we all need to be aware of the saying ‘that the spoken word can never be unspoken’ especially as increasingly we play out our lives on public platforms.
Many defendants are now rigorously defending cases that may have previously been settled and they will use all the tools available to discredit claimants or disprove their claims. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and many other sites can leave a permanent record of your activities and lifestyle and can and can been used in evidence against you!
The Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 was enacted to discourage people from bringing false or exaggerated claims in personal injury cases and cases have been dismissed where it has be proven that there has been false and misleading evidence submitted.
In December 2012, a plaintiff alleged that as a result of a road traffic accident on 17th November 2005 he suffered an injury to his left hand, his left knee and his right foot. He was taken by ambulance to hospital and went on to have an operation and was immobilised for approximately three months thereafter. The plaintiff then had further surgery to remove a piece of plastic from his hand. It was accepted by the court that his injuries were of a serious nature.
However, in the course of giving evidence, the defendants questioned the plaintiff on his hobby of “car-drifting”. The plaintiff stated that he had to give up this hobby and he repeated this assertion to medical attendants when assessed for the purposes of the case. However, in the course of evidence, it became clear that the plaintiff had not in fact given up this hobby and photographs and videos were produced showing the plaintiff engaging in this and other activities.
In his written judgment, Mr. Justice Smyth stated that he was satisfied that the plaintiff's claim for loss of earnings and loss of activities was deliberately exaggerated. He was also satisfied as a matter of probability that the plaintiff himself knew that the information was false and misleading and dismissed the claim in its entirety. Facebook was used as evidence against another plaintiff whereby it was alleged that he "overstated his injuries" and engaged in "an act of dishonesty" when he denied he participated in a charity parachute jump six months after the incident according Ms Justice Mary Irvine. His facebook page was used to discredit his claim and his case was ultimately dismissed under Section 26 of The Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 and he faced a large legal fee from the defendant insurance company.
If you have any questions about a potential injury claim please feel free to contact me at laura{at}brophysolicitors.ie and I will be happy to access your case.
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