Cerebral Palsy Medical Negligence Claims in Ireland

In Ireland, a cerebral palsy medical negligence claim can be brought when a hospital's failure during pregnancy, labour, or neonatal care caused a child's brain injury. Irish High Court settlements range from €5 million to over €31 million. No time limit runs until the child turns 18.

Cerebral palsy medical negligence claims in Ireland typically produce the highest compensation awards in the Irish legal system, with recent High Court settlements ranging from approximately €14 million to over €31 million. These figures reflect the cost of lifelong 24-hour care, therapies, housing adaptations, and lost future earnings for a child whose brain was injured during pregnancy, labour, or shortly after birth. Not every case of cerebral palsy results from negligence. Research suggests fewer than 20% of cases are linked to errors during the birth process. However, when medical staff fail to act on warning signs during delivery, the consequences for the child and family can be permanent.

According to the 2024 Interdepartmental Working Group report on rising health claim costs, cerebral palsy claims make up roughly 2% of all health-related claims managed by the State Claims Agency (SCA) but account for over 50% of the total cost. The SCA paid €210.5 million in clinical awards and settlements in 2024 alone. Four of the five largest individual payouts in recent years involved children with cerebral palsy.

Time limit (children): No deadline runs until the child turns 18. The child then has two years (to age 20). Parents can act as "next friend" at any time before 18. Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004, s.7

Court venue: Cerebral palsy claims are High Court actions by value. The IRB (formerly PIAB) exemption for medical negligence applies under PIAB Act 2003, s.3(d).

Who defends: The State Claims Agency defends all public hospital claims on behalf of the HSE under the Clinical Indemnity Scheme.

Settlement structure: Lump sum plus interim payments. Periodic Payment Orders (PPOs) were introduced by the Civil Liability (Amendment) Act 2017 ³ but are not functioning in practice.

Quick Answers

Can I claim? Yes, if medical negligence caused or contributed to your child's cerebral palsy. Fewer than 20% of CP cases are negligence-related, so independent expert review is needed first.

How much? Irish High Court settlements range from approximately €5 million to over €31 million, depending on severity (GMFCS level), lifetime care needs, and loss of earnings. General damages are capped at €550,000.

How long? 5 to 10 years or longer. CP claims take more time than typical medical negligence cases because the child's developmental trajectory must be assessed. Interim payments can be obtained earlier.

Deadline? No deadline runs until the child turns 18. Parents can act as "next friend" at any stage before that. The child then has until their 20th birthday to bring their own claim.

Contents

What is cerebral palsy and when is it caused by medical negligence?

A cerebral palsy medical negligence claim in Ireland is a legal action brought on behalf of a child whose brain was injured before, during, or shortly after birth due to substandard medical care, seeking compensation for the child's lifetime care needs. Under Irish law, the claim must prove two things: that the medical team's care fell below the standard expected of a reasonably competent practitioner (breach of duty, tested under the Dunne v National Maternity Hospital [1989] principles), and that this failure directly caused the brain injury (causation).

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a permanent neurological condition that affects movement, muscle tone, and coordination, caused by damage to the developing brain before, during, or shortly after birth. The condition is not progressive, meaning it does not worsen over time, but its effects are lifelong. Approximately 150 children are born with cerebral palsy in Ireland each year, and around 12,500 people in Ireland live with the condition.

A common misconception is that all cerebral palsy results from birth errors. Medical research indicates that fewer than 20% of CP cases are linked to mismanagement of the birth process. Many cases have antenatal causes, including congenital brain malformations, infections during pregnancy, placental disorders, or genetic factors. The Cerebral Palsy Foundation Ireland Programme of Excellence, operating across four tertiary maternity hospitals (Cork University Maternity Hospital, the Coombe, the Rotunda, and the National Maternity Hospital at Holles Street), is working to improve early detection of CP through a research network led by UCC's INFANT Centre. Earlier identification benefits families, but it does not change the legal threshold. A credible claim requires proof that a specific failure in medical care caused or materially contributed to the brain injury. When that proof exists, the child is entitled to compensation that funds their care for life.

When is cerebral palsy NOT caused by negligence?

The majority of cerebral palsy cases in Ireland are not caused by clinical errors during birth. Published medical research indicates that fewer than 20% of CP cases result from birth process mismanagement. Understanding the non-negligent causes is just as important as understanding the negligent ones, because the SCA will argue these alternative explanations in every contested case.

Common non-negligent causes of cerebral palsy include: prematurity (babies born before 28 weeks face the highest CP risk because of brain fragility, regardless of the quality of obstetric care), congenital brain malformations that develop during pregnancy due to genetic or chromosomal factors, placental insufficiency that gradually restricts oxygen and nutrients over weeks rather than during acute labour events, maternal infections such as cytomegalovirus or toxoplasmosis where the infection crossed the placenta before any clinician could have intervened, and neonatal stroke caused by blood clotting disorders unrelated to delivery management.

In practice, the line between negligent and non-negligent causes is where most CP cases are won or lost. The SCA will commission its own experts to argue that the brain injury was pre-existing or caused by factors outside the delivery team's control. Your experts must demonstrate, on the balance of probabilities, that the injury pattern, timing, and clinical records point to a preventable intrapartum event rather than one of these alternative causes.

How does medical negligence cause cerebral palsy during birth?

The most common negligence pattern in Irish cerebral palsy cases is a failure to recognise and act on signs of fetal distress during labour, leading to oxygen deprivation (hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy, or HIE). According to the HSE National Clinical Guideline for Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring (2025), delayed delivery, inadequate CTG (cardiotocography) interpretation, and misuse of oxytocin remain the main preventable causes of intrapartum hypoxia in Irish maternity units.

Specific clinical failures that commonly give rise to cerebral palsy claims in Ireland include:

Clinical failures commonly linked to cerebral palsy claims in Ireland

Clinical failure	How it causes brain injury	What records should show
Failure to interpret CTG traces correctly	Abnormal fetal heart patterns go unrecognised, delaying intervention while the baby's oxygen supply drops	CTG strips showing late decelerations or reduced variability with no documented clinical response
Delayed caesarean section	When fetal distress is identified but the decision to deliver by emergency C-section is not made or is delayed	Time gap between pathological CTG and delivery decision; theatre availability logs
Misuse of oxytocin (syntocinon)	Excessive doses cause uterine hyperstimulation, reducing blood flow and oxygen to the baby	Drug chart showing dose, timing, and whether it was reduced or stopped when distress appeared
Failure to initiate cooling therapy within 6 hours	Therapeutic hypothermia must begin within 6 hours of birth when HIE is suspected. Delays cause additional brain damage	Time of birth vs time cooling started, whether transfer to a cooling unit was needed
Untreated neonatal jaundice (kernicterus)	Elevated bilirubin crosses the blood-brain barrier, causing permanent damage to the basal ganglia	Bilirubin levels, timing of phototherapy, exchange transfusion records
Undiagnosed infection (Group B Streptococcus, meningitis)	Maternal or neonatal infection damages the developing brain if not identified and treated promptly	Antenatal screening results, antibiotic administration times, blood culture results

Ireland's National Clinical Guideline for Intrapartum Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring (2025) ¹⁵ mandates a "fresh eyes and ears" protocol. A second clinician must independently review the CTG trace during labour and document that review with a time and signature. Parents can check their medical records for evidence that this protocol was followed.

A detail that catches many families off guard: cooling therapy units are concentrated in Dublin and Cork. Babies born in regional hospitals who need cooling must be transferred, and delays in neonatal transport can themselves constitute a breach of the standard of care. The 2024 Interdepartmental Working Group specifically flagged this geographic gap as a systemic concern.

Red flags parents can check in their own birth records

Parents often ask whether what happened during their child's birth was negligence or an unavoidable complication. While only independent expert review can answer that question definitively, certain observable events during or after delivery frequently appear in cerebral palsy claims that proceed to court in Ireland:

What types of cerebral palsy result from birth injury?

Cerebral palsy is classified into four main types based on which area of the brain was damaged and how the child's movement is affected. The type of CP directly influences the care the child needs, the therapies required, and the compensation structure in a claim.

Types of cerebral palsy and their link to birth injury negligence

CP type	Brain area damaged	Key symptoms	Approximate prevalence
Spastic (most common)	Motor cortex / pyramidal tracts	Stiff, tight muscles. Difficulty relaxing limbs. Scissoring gait in legs	~77% of all CP cases
Dyskinetic (athetoid)	Basal ganglia	Involuntary, uncontrolled twisting or writhing movements. Fluctuating muscle tone	~5-10%
Ataxic	Cerebellum	Poor balance and coordination. Shaky movements. Difficulty with fine motor tasks	~2-5%
Mixed	Multiple brain areas	Combination of symptoms from two or more types above	~10-15%

Spastic quadriplegia, which affects all four limbs and is the most severe form, has the strongest association with birth asphyxia and HIE. Children with spastic quadriplegia typically need full-time care and assistance for the rest of their lives. Dyskinetic CP caused by kernicterus (untreated jaundice) represents a distinct causal pathway that is almost always preventable with proper monitoring.

How body distribution affects a CP claim

Alongside the motor type, doctors classify cerebral palsy by which parts of the body are affected. This topographical classification directly influences the care cost calculation and the GMFCS level assigned.

Topographical classification of cerebral palsy

Classification	Body parts affected	Typical care and compensation profile
Hemiplegia	One side of the body (one arm and one leg)	Often GMFCS Level I-II. The child typically walks independently but may need occupational therapy and orthotics. Lower compensation range.
Diplegia	Primarily the legs, with arms less affected	Often GMFCS Level II-III. The child may walk with aids. Significant therapy needs, adapted equipment. Mid-range compensation.
Quadriplegia	All four limbs, often including the trunk, face, and mouth	Often GMFCS Level IV-V. Full-time care, communication aids, adapted housing, specialist nursing. Highest compensation range (typically €10m+).

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How does GMFCS level affect a cerebral palsy claim?

The Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) is a five-level scale that doctors use to describe how a child with cerebral palsy moves, and in claims, it directly drives the calculation of lifetime care costs and compensation. Understanding where your child falls on this scale is one of the first things a solicitor will assess.

GMFCS levels, typical care needs, and estimated annual care costs in Ireland

GMFCS Level	Movement ability	Typical care needs	Estimated annual care cost range
Level I	Walks without aids; minor limitations in speed and balance	Periodic physiotherapy; possible orthotics; monitoring	€10,000 to €25,000
Level II	Walks with limitations; may use handrail on stairs	Regular physiotherapy; occupational therapy; some educational support	€25,000 to €60,000
Level III	Walks with hand-held mobility device indoors	Daily therapy; adapted equipment; partial care assistance; educational support	€60,000 to €120,000
Level IV	Self-mobility limited; may use powered wheelchair	Significant daily care; adapted housing; full educational support; communication aids	€120,000 to €250,000
Level V	Transported in manual wheelchair with head support	24-hour waking care; specialist nursing; full housing adaptation; all therapies	€250,000 to €350,000+

These are indicative ranges based on private care rates in Ireland. Actual costs depend on the specific child's needs, the therapies prescribed by their care team, and the rates applicable at the time of settlement. All figures are subject to actuarial adjustment for life expectancy and the discount rates set out in Russell v HSE (1% for wage-related care, 1.5% for other pecuniary losses). See our future care costs guide for details.

GMFCS levels are typically stable after age 5. This means that in a claim, the level established at age 5 to 7 is generally the basis for projecting lifetime care needs. However, the claim itself often cannot be fully assessed until the child's developmental trajectory is clearer, which is one reason CP cases take many years to resolve.

How is a cerebral palsy claim proven in Ireland?

A cerebral palsy claim in Ireland requires proof of two things: (1) that the medical team's care fell below the standard expected of a reasonably competent practitioner (breach of duty), and (2) that this failure directly caused the brain injury (causation). The legal test for breach of duty comes from the Supreme Court decision in Dunne v National Maternity Hospital [1989] IR 91. Unlike in England and Wales, where the Bolam/Bolitho test applies, Irish courts assess negligence under the Dunne principles, which ask whether any practitioner of equal specialist skill would have acted the same way with ordinary care. Our breach of duty guide explains this test in detail.

Proving a cerebral palsy claim requires a multi-disciplinary expert team that goes far beyond a single medical report. We call this the Six-Discipline CP Evidence Protocol because each of the six expert disciplines addresses a different legal question that the court must answer. A typical CP case requires independent reports from:

1. Consultant obstetrician to review antenatal care, labour management, and delivery decisions
2. Consultant neonatologist to assess postnatal care, resuscitation, and cooling therapy
3. Paediatric neurologist to confirm the nature and extent of the brain injury and its link to the events at birth
4. Neuroradiologist to interpret MRI and brain imaging in the context of timing (acute vs chronic injury patterns)
5. Life care planner / occupational therapist to produce a detailed schedule of the child's lifetime care needs by GMFCS level
6. Actuary to calculate the present-day value of lifetime care, applying the discount rates from Russell v HSE

One aspect the official guidance does not cover: MRI timing matters for proving when the brain injury occurred. An MRI taken in the first 7 to 14 days after birth can distinguish acute hypoxic injury (which may be linked to events during labour) from chronic or prenatal damage (which typically is not negligence-related). If MRI imaging is delayed beyond this window, the timing evidence becomes harder to interpret, weakening the causation argument.

How does the State Claims Agency defend these cases?

The State Claims Agency (SCA) defends cerebral palsy claims against HSE hospitals and rarely disputes that a clinical error occurred. Instead, its primary strategy is to contest causation, arguing that the brain injury had already happened before the breach. According to the 2024 Interdepartmental Working Group report (gov.ie), clinical claims represent 81% of the SCA's outstanding liability despite being only 37% of active claims, driven primarily by cerebral palsy and catastrophic birth injury settlements. This disproportionate cost is the single most important tactical reality parents should understand.

In a delayed C-section case, for example, the SCA might accept that the CTG was pathological for an extended period and that the decision to deliver was delayed. But its medical experts will argue that the brain damage had already occurred before the trace became abnormal, meaning the delay made no difference to the outcome. If the SCA succeeds on this causation argument, the family receives nothing, even though everyone agrees the care was substandard.

Defeating this defence requires a second layer of expert evidence, typically from a paediatric neurologist and neuroradiologist, who can establish the precise timing of the brain injury relative to the breach. The neonatal MRI, Apgar scores, cord blood gas results, and the pattern of neonatal encephalopathy all feed into this timing analysis. The full Six-Discipline CP Evidence Protocol is needed precisely because the SCA will challenge each link in the chain. Cases with strong breach evidence can still fail entirely if the causation link cannot be proved on the balance of probabilities.

What compensation can a cerebral palsy claim provide?

Cerebral palsy compensation in Ireland is divided into general damages (pain and suffering, capped at €550,000 under the Personal Injuries Guidelines 2021) and special damages (uncapped, covering all lifetime financial losses). When the public sees reports of €20 million or €30 million settlements, virtually all of that figure consists of special damages for future care.

The major categories of special damages in a cerebral palsy claim include:

Special damages categories in Irish cerebral palsy claims

Category	What it covers	Typical annual cost or lump sum
Lifetime nursing and care	Daytime carers, waking-night nurses, respite care	€150,000 to €350,000+ per year (GMFCS IV-V)
Therapies	Physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, hydrotherapy	€10,000 to €25,000+ per year
Assistive technology and equipment	Wheelchairs, communication devices, adapted vehicle, hoisting equipment	€15,000 to €30,000+ annualised
Adapted housing	Purchase or adaptation of wheelchair-accessible property with hoist tracking, wet rooms, sensory rooms	Lump sum, often exceeding €500,000
Loss of future earnings	Compensation for the child's reduced or lost earning capacity over their working life	Lump sum, varies with age and projected earnings
Educational support	Special needs assistants, adapted learning materials, specialist schooling	Variable by age and needs

All figures are indicative. Every claim is assessed on its own facts. Amounts are subject to actuarial adjustment and the discount rates from Russell v HSE. See our compensation guide for general principles.

Recent Irish cerebral palsy settlements

Named Irish High Court settlements demonstrate both the scale of compensation available and the range of clinical failures that give rise to cerebral palsy claims. These cases are a matter of public record.

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What is the time limit for a cerebral palsy claim in Ireland?

For children with cerebral palsy, the limitation period does not begin until the child turns 18. The child then has two years to bring a claim in their own name, giving an effective deadline of the child's 20th birthday. Parents or guardians can bring the claim as "next friend" at any time before the child turns 18, under Section 7 of the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004. ¹ Unlike in England and Wales where the general limitation period is three years (Limitation Act 1980), Ireland's standard period for personal injury is two years from the date of injury or date of knowledge.

A separate and often overlooked rule applies when diagnosis is delayed. Cerebral palsy is not always diagnosed immediately. Many children are not diagnosed until 12 to 24 months of age, sometimes later. Section 2 of the Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Act 1991 ⁶ provides a "date of knowledge" test. The clock starts from the date when the parent first knew (or should reasonably have known) that the child's condition was linked to the care received. For late-diagnosed CP, this can extend the window beyond what families expect.

Where a person with cerebral palsy lacks mental capacity and will never be able to manage their own affairs, the limitation period may not run at all. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 ⁷ governs these situations and should be reviewed with your solicitor. See our date of knowledge guide for detailed analysis.

Can periodic payments replace a lump sum?

Periodic Payment Orders (PPOs) were introduced by the Civil Liability (Amendment) Act 2017 and commenced in October 2018, but the system is not functioning in practice. The High Court in Hegarty v HSE (2019) described the PPO legislation as "a dead letter" in its current form.

The core problem: the Act tied payment adjustments to the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), which tracks general consumer inflation. The cost of specialist nursing and complex medical care rises significantly faster than general inflation. The High Court ruled that using HICP would systematically under-compensate the plaintiff over their lifetime. Judges now refuse to approve PPOs, forcing families back into lump-sum settlements.

The 2024 Interdepartmental Working Group recommended resuming PPOs with a corrected indexation mechanism. Until that legislative fix happens, cerebral palsy claims in Ireland are settled as large lump sums, sometimes supplemented by interim payments during the course of litigation. Families must plan for long-term investment management of these funds. See our future care costs guide for more on how lifetime funding works.

Could the "lost years" ruling change CP compensation in Ireland?

The February 2026 UK Supreme Court decision in CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust overturned a 40-year rule that prevented injured children from claiming damages for earnings lost during years they will not live to see. Under the previous Croke v Wiseman precedent, a child whose life expectancy was shortened by medical negligence could not claim for the income they would have earned during those "lost years." Adult claimants could. The Supreme Court ruled four-to-one that this distinction was unjust, bringing children into line with adults.

While CCC v Sheffield is a UK judgment, decisions of this appellate level carry strong persuasive authority in the Irish High Court. Irish tort law frequently mirrors developments in the neighbouring jurisdiction, particularly in complex medical negligence cases. For children with severe cerebral palsy and reduced life expectancy, the practical effect could be significant. A child expected to live to 40 rather than 80, for example, could now claim for 25+ years of projected lost earnings that would previously have been excluded from the settlement. According to Kennedys Law (March 2026), the ruling adds a potentially multi-million pound (or euro) head of damages to catastrophic paediatric claims. See our loss of earnings guide for how this category is calculated in Ireland.

No Irish court has yet ruled on whether CCC v Sheffield will be followed in this jurisdiction. However, solicitors acting in cerebral palsy claims should be alive to this new head of special damages when advising on quantum.

What changed under the Patient Safety Act 2023?

The Patient Safety (Notifiable Incidents and Open Disclosure) Act 2023, which commenced on 26 September 2024, requires hospitals to hold a formal open disclosure meeting with families after serious incidents, including severe birth injuries. This was a significant change from the previous position where institutional silence often delayed families from understanding what happened during their child's birth.

A critical legal point parents must understand: Section 10 of the Act ⁵ provides that information shared and any apology made during an open disclosure meeting cannot be used as an admission of fault or liability in civil proceedings. An apology under this Act is a statutory transparency measure, not a legal concession of negligence. The full burden of proving breach of duty and causation through independent expert evidence remains on the family.

Practical advice: attend the open disclosure meeting, take notes, request the written record (which the hospital must provide within five days), and bring all records to your solicitor for independent review.

How long does a cerebral palsy claim take?

Cerebral palsy claims in Ireland typically take 5 to 10 years or longer to reach final resolution. According to the NTMA 2024 Annual Report (RTÉ, July 2025), 56% of all SCA claims were resolved without court proceedings being served, but cerebral palsy cases are among the most complex and time-consuming within the system. This extended timeline reflects several factors unique to catastrophic paediatric claims.

The child's condition and developmental trajectory often cannot be fully assessed until age 5 to 7 at the earliest. Expert reports from six or more disciplines must be commissioned, reviewed, and sometimes updated as the child grows. The SCA defence typically involves its own team of experts who will challenge causation. Mediation is standard in these cases and can itself span multiple sessions over months.

Interim payments can be obtained before final settlement where the defendant has admitted liability or where the court orders them. In the Henry Nally case, an initial interim payment of €250,000 was followed by €3.6 million before the final settlement of €14.166 million. These payments help families fund immediate care needs, therapies, and equipment while the claim is ongoing. See our claim timeline guide for general process timelines.

What records and evidence do parents need?

Parents should request a complete copy of all medical records relating to the pregnancy, labour, delivery, and neonatal care as early as possible. Under GDPR, you have the right to these records. Our medical records request guide includes a template letter.

Key records in a cerebral palsy case include CTG (fetal heart rate monitoring) strips, the partogram (labour progress chart), anaesthetic and theatre records, drug administration charts (particularly oxytocin/syntocinon dosing), neonatal observation charts, Apgar scores, cord blood gas results, neonatal MRI or CT brain scans, and all discharge and follow-up letters. Each of these feeds into the Six-Discipline CP Evidence Protocol and may be reviewed by different experts for different purposes.

What Apgar scores and cord blood gases tell your solicitor

Apgar scores are recorded at 1 minute and 5 minutes after birth. Each score ranges from 0 to 10, assessing heart rate, breathing, muscle tone, reflexes, and skin colour. A score below 5 at one minute or below 7 at five minutes suggests the baby was in difficulty at birth. Very low scores (0 to 3) indicate severe distress. Cord blood gas results measure the pH and base deficit of the baby's blood taken from the umbilical cord immediately after delivery. A cord pH below 7.0 or a base deficit above 12 mmol/L indicates significant oxygen deprivation at or around the time of birth. These two data points are among the first things an expert will check when assessing whether hypoxic brain injury occurred during labour.

One practical point that is often overlooked: CTG strips are sometimes stored separately from the main medical chart and can be mislaid. Neonatal MRI imaging in the first 7 to 14 days is particularly important for establishing when the brain injury occurred. If your child was transferred to a different hospital for cooling therapy, request records from both hospitals.

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Common Questions

Is all cerebral palsy caused by medical negligence?

No. Research indicates that fewer than 20% of cerebral palsy cases result from errors during the birth process.

Many cases have causes that are not linked to clinical care, including congenital brain malformations, infections during pregnancy, genetic factors, and prematurity-related complications. A thorough investigation with independent medical experts is needed to determine whether negligence played a role in your child's diagnosis.

The difference between assessment and acceptance often comes down to the neonatal MRI. Acute hypoxic injury patterns visible in the first 7 to 14 days point toward labour events. Chronic or prenatal patterns typically rule negligence out.

Next: How expert reports work in medical negligence

Do I need to pay upfront for a cerebral palsy claim?

Most cerebral palsy claims in Ireland are handled on a no-win, no-fee basis.

The solicitor's fees are paid from the compensation recovered if the case succeeds. If the case does not succeed, you do not pay solicitor fees. Expert report costs can be significant in CP cases (often €20,000 to €50,000+ across all six disciplines in the evidence protocol). Discuss how these are funded during your initial consultation.

One detail that surprises clients: the expert reports are often the biggest upfront expense, not the solicitor's own fees. Some firms fund these from their own resources. Others arrange deferred payment. Ask about this at the first meeting.

See also: Legal costs in medical negligence claims

Will bringing a claim affect my child's HSE services?

No. Your child's entitlement to HSE services, disability allowances, and public health supports is not affected by a medical negligence claim.

The claim is against the HSE as an organisation (defended by the State Claims Agency), not against individual staff members. Your child's treating clinicians continue to provide care as normal. The claim and the care operate on completely separate tracks.

A concern that catches many families off guard: some parents worry that the hospital staff will treat their child differently after proceedings begin. In practice, the clinical team typically has no involvement in the litigation. The SCA instructs its own legal team and independent medical experts.

Read more: What to do if you suspect medical negligence

Can an adult with cerebral palsy still bring a claim?

It depends on the circumstances. If the person has mental capacity, the standard two-year period applies from their 18th birthday (to age 20).

If they lack capacity to manage their own affairs, the limitation period may not have started running at all. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 governs these situations and may preserve the right to claim indefinitely where the person has never had legal capacity.

Between assessment and settlement, the sticking point for adult claims is usually the medical records. Hospitals must retain maternity records for 25 years, but gaps are common in older files. Original CTG strips from 20 or 30 years ago may have been lost. Expert opinion on causation becomes harder without them, though not impossible.

Date of knowledge in medical negligence

Can I bring a claim against a private hospital?

Yes. Cerebral palsy claims can be brought against both public (HSE) and private hospitals in Ireland.

The legal test for negligence under the Dunne principles is the same regardless of whether the hospital is public or private. The defendant in a private hospital claim is the hospital or the individual consultant, not the State Claims Agency. Private hospital claims are defended by the hospital's medical malpractice insurer rather than the SCA.

In practice, private hospital claims can sometimes progress faster because the insurer's approach to mediation and settlement may differ from the SCA's. However, the evidential requirements are identical.

Related: Medical negligence compensation in Ireland

Can I get money before the case is fully settled?

Yes, through interim payments. Where the defendant admits liability or where the court orders it, the child can receive funds before the final settlement.

Interim payments cover immediate care needs, therapies, equipment, and housing adaptations while the full claim is being assessed. These payments are credited against the final settlement figure. In the Nally case, interim payments totalling €3.85 million were made before the full €14.166 million settlement.

What the timeline estimates do not account for: the gap between needing care and receiving funding can be severe. Applying for an early interim payment, even a modest one, can make the difference between a child receiving private therapy now or waiting years for HSE provision.

Next: Future care costs in medical negligence

My child was diagnosed with CP at age 2. Is it too late to claim?

Very likely not. Cerebral palsy is often diagnosed between 12 and 24 months of age, sometimes later.

The "date of knowledge" rule under Section 2 of the Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Act 1991 means the limitation clock may not start until you first knew (or should have known) the condition was linked to birth events. For children, no limitation period runs until age 18 in any case, giving an effective deadline of age 20.

The Cerebral Palsy Foundation Ireland's early detection programme, running across four tertiary maternity hospitals, is improving how quickly CP is identified. Earlier diagnosis helps families act sooner, but it does not shorten the legal deadline.

Claims for children in medical negligence

What should I do first if I suspect negligence caused my child's CP?

Request your full medical records immediately. Use a Subject Access Request under GDPR addressed to every hospital involved in your care.

Then consult a solicitor who handles cerebral palsy claims specifically, not general personal injury. The solicitor will arrange for independent medical experts to review the records and advise whether there is evidence of negligence. Ask about the Six-Discipline CP Evidence Protocol and how the expert costs are funded.

The IRB statistics do not capture this nuance: cerebral palsy claims are exempt from the Injuries Resolution Board process under PIAB Act 2003, s.3(d). Your solicitor issues proceedings directly to the High Court. There is no mandatory IRB assessment step for medical negligence.

More: Step-by-step: what to do if you suspect medical negligence

What to Consider Next

What if the hospital has already apologised under the Patient Safety Act?

An open disclosure apology under the Patient Safety Act 2023 cannot be used as an admission of fault in court. The apology may confirm that something went wrong, but it does not prove negligence caused your child's cerebral palsy. Independent expert evidence is still required. Bring the written record of the open disclosure meeting to your solicitor for review alongside the full medical records.

Can compensation be reduced if my child's CP was partly caused by a pre-existing condition?

If the medical team's negligence made an existing condition worse, compensation covers the additional harm caused by the negligence, not the underlying condition. The SCA's experts will try to attribute as much of the injury as possible to non-negligent causes. Your experts must establish what proportion of the brain damage is attributable to the clinical failures. Courts apply a balance of probabilities test to this question.

How is the compensation money managed for a child?

Compensation awarded to a minor is paid into court and managed under the direction of a judge. The court typically approves a professional fund manager or trustee to invest the funds. Parents can apply to the court for releases to cover specific care costs, equipment, housing, or therapy needs as they arise. When the child reaches 18 (or when capacity is determined), the arrangements are reviewed.

References

Sources cited on this page. All URLs checked 28 March 2026.

1. Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004, s.7 (irishstatutebook.ie)
2. Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003, s.3(d) (irishstatutebook.ie)
3. Civil Liability (Amendment) Act 2017 (irishstatutebook.ie)
4. Patient Safety (Notifiable Incidents and Open Disclosure) Act 2023 (irishstatutebook.ie)
5. Patient Safety Act 2023, Section 10 (irishstatutebook.ie)
6. Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Act 1991, s.2 (irishstatutebook.ie)
7. Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 (irishstatutebook.ie)
8. Personal Injuries Guidelines 2021 (judicialcouncil.ie)
9. State Claims Agency, NTMA Annual Report 2024 (ntma.ie)
10. Interdepartmental Working Group on the Rising Cost of Health-Related Claims 2024 (gov.ie)
11. Henry Nally v HSE settlement, RTÉ News, July 2022
12. Limerick maternity settlement report, Irish Claims Board, October 2024
13. Alex Foley v HSE, McMahon Goldrick Solicitors report, 2023
14. HSE National Clinical Guidelines, Woman and Infants Programme (hse.ie)
15. National Clinical Guideline for Intrapartum Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring (2025), hse.ie
16. CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2026] UKSC, Kennedys Law case review (March 2026)
17. Cerebral Palsy Foundation Ireland Programme of Excellence, cerebralpalsyfoundation.org
18. Interdepartmental Working Group on the Rising Cost of Health-Related Claims 2024 (gov.ie/assets)
19. NTMA Annual Report 2024, State Claims Agency section (RTÉ, July 2025)

Related guides: Birth injury negligence (Ireland) • Brain injury from medical negligence • Future care costs • Expert medical reports • Date of knowledge • Claims for children