A soldier who has a "significant" hearing handicap, according to an expert called on behalf of the Minister for Defence, was awarded £65,000 damages in the High Court yesterday.
Mr Justice Johnson put a stay on £45,000 of the sum awarded to Sgt Brendan McCarthy, of Clonsilla, Dublin, in the event of an appeal.
The award was in respect of hearing loss and tinnitus. The judge found that the soldier has a hearing loss of 18 per cent and added another 7 per cent to that figure for projected hearing loss at the age of 60, giving a total of 25 per cent.