The parents of a profoundly brain-damaged and wheel-chair bound girl are facing an estimated legal bill of €600,000, following the High Court's dismissal of the child's action for damages taken against the Mid-Western Health Board and a consultant obstetrician.
Mr Justice O'Sullivan yesterday awarded the costs of 13 days of the 17-day action against Ms Kathleen Quinn (41), Fortanne, O'Callaghan's Mills, Co Clare, who had sued on behalf of her 13-year-old daughter, Anne-Marie.
It was claimed there was a failure to properly monitor and intervene in the "high-risk" pregnancy of Ms Quinn, who is a diabetic, and that this had led to Anne-Marie sustaining severe and permanent brain damage and cerebral palsy. The Mid-Western Health Board and consultant obstetrician Dr Donal O'Sullivan had denied the claims.
The judge said he had been left with "two mutually inconsistent bodies of evidence, neither of which wholly and satisfactorily resolved the issues".
