The government has finally responded to the Law on Damages consultation some 2 years after it closed, but both claimant and defendant lawyers have expressed disappointment.

The consultation was considering various issues relating to the law on damages, including:

103 responses were received between May 2007 to July 2007, but the government has taken 2 years to respond finally publishing on 1 July 2009.

Proposals include an extension of the fatal Accidents Act 1976 to extend eligibility for bereavement damages to children under 18, and co-habitees who have lived together for at least 2 years.

However, lawyers on both sides have dubbed the response as an anti-climax.

John McQuatar, president of APIL, said the long awaited changes did not go far enough. He said, ‘The government hasn’t understood that the current level of bereavement damages is seen as an insult by many people’.

Unsurprisingly defendant lawyers have complained, saying the proposals could see a rise in claims for damages and over compensation. Sarah White of Brown Jacobson, said ‘After waiting for two years the government’s response is a major disappointment. The review set out to tackle a number of thorny issues but aside from a few amendments to the Fatal Accidents Act, little has come of it’.

Click here to see the MoJs news release.