PART 3

Personal Injuries Assessment Board

Chapter 1

Establishment and principal functions of Board

52. —The Minister shall, by order, appoint a day to be the establishment day for the purposes of this Act.

53. —(1) There shall stand established, on the establishment day, a body which shall be known as the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (in this Act referred to as the “Board”) to perform the functions conferred on it by this Act.

(2) The Board shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and an official seal and shall have power to sue, and may be sued, in its corporate name, and shall, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, have power to acquire, hold and dispose of land or an interest in land, and to acquire, hold and dispose of any other property.

(3) The Board shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, be independent in the performance of its functions.

(4) The seal of the Board shall be authenticated by—

(a) the signature of 2 members of the Board, or

(b) the signatures of both—

(i) a member of the Board, and

(ii) such member of the staff of the Board as is authorised by the Board to act in that behalf.

(5) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the Board and any document purporting to be an instrument made by, and to be sealed with the seal of, the Board shall be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without further proof, unless the contrary is shown.

54. —(1) The principal functions of the Board shall be—

(a) to arrange for the making, in accordance with this Act, of assessments of relevant claims the subject of applications to it under section 11 ,

(b) to prepare and publish a document (which shall be known as the “Book of Quantum”) containing general guidelines as to the amounts that may be awarded or assessed in respect of specified types of injury,

(c) to cause a cost-benefit analysis to be made of the legal procedures and the associated processes (including those provided for by this Act) that are currently employed in the State for the purpose of awarding compensation for personal injuries,

(d) to collect and analyse data in relation to amounts awarded on foot of, or agreed in settlement of, civil actions to which this Act applies, and

(e) to perform any additional functions conferred on the Board under section 55 .

(2) The Board shall have all such powers as are necessary or expedient for, or incidental to, the performance of its functions under this Act.

(3) The Board may perform any of its functions through or by any member of the staff of the Board duly authorised in that behalf by the Board.

55. —(1) The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, confer on the Board, by order, such additional functions connected with the functions for the time being of the Board as he or she thinks fit, subject to such conditions (if any) as may be specified in the order.

(2) An order under this section may contain such incidental, supplemental and consequential provisions as may, in the opinion of the Minister, be necessary to give full effect to the order.