AN award of £13,500 to Ms Donna Maguire, convicted in Germany on a bombing charge some years ago, for twisting her ankle on a broken paving stone is to be appealed.
Formal notice was lodged in the High Court in Belfast yesterday, less than a week before the expiry of the period granted by Mr Justice Pringle when he made the award last month.
Ms Maguire (29), from John Martin Gardens, Newry, Co Down, said she had to give up dancing and jogging after she tripped and fell in Patrick Street, Newry, in June 1985.
Her lawyer explained the delay in bringing the case by saying that she had been outside the jurisdiction for a lengthy period. She was in custody in Germany awaiting trial on a charge of being involved in a bombing at a British army base at Osnabruck in 1989.
She was eventually sentenced to nine years imprisonment last June but was immediately released because of the six years she had been held in custody.
The compensation award provoked jury from unionist and Tory MPs and led to one tabling a motion at Westminster expressing outrage about the decision.
The award was against the Department of the Environment and in the notice of appeal, its lawyer contended that the judge's finding of negligence contributing to Ms Maguire's injuries was contrary to, the evidence. The appeal notice also stated that the judge's finding that she was not guilty of contributory negligence was against the weight of the evidence.
The final submission was that the judge's award of £13,500 was excessive and unreasonable and out of all proportion, to the evidence. If the appeal is successful, Ms Maguire could face a large legal bill as the department is also seeking an order for the costs of both hearings.