Please note that the information below may not apply to accidents that occur in Scotland. Therefore if you are looking for advice on child settlements in a Scottish claim please contact us direct.
When you have been involved in an accident, it can already be an upsetting time. However, when your children have also been involved this can make the scenario 10 times worse, especially if your child is injured. Fortunately, it is possible to pursue a claim on behalf of a minor (any persons under the age of 18) and therefore this may help make the situation appear clearer and go towards compensating for the distress involved.
So how does pursuing a whiplash claim for a child work? It is relatively simple. Primarily, the child will need what is called a litigation Friend to undertake the day to day running of the case. This is usually a parent or guardian, but can be anybody that is close to the child and most importantly acting in the child’s best interest.
What is a litigation friend?
To act as a litigation friend, a certificate of suitability is required. This states that the proposed litigation friend is:
“Able to conduct proceedings on behalf of the [minor] competently and fairly and [has] no interests adverse to those of the [minor]”
The court is able to cease someone acting as a litigation friend if they do not feel that they are acting in the child’s best interest – so it is important that this be the litigation friend’s primary focus.
Once a litigation friend is appointed, they simply run the case like it was their own. However, the main difference is when the case gets to the point of settlement.
Here, the court steps in as under civil procedure rule 21.10:
“no settlement, compromise or payment… shall be valid… without the approval of the court”
This is referred to as an “Infant approval hearing” and ensures that the settlement proposed is suitable for the case and the child. The judge will also look to ensure that the money is invested – so put into a trust fund – until the child reaches 18. This ensures that any monies are protected and used wholly by the claimant for the benefit of the claimant.
What happens if the case continues past the claimants 18th birthday?
Basically, on the claimants 18th birthday the litigation friend ceases to have control over the case and this instead transfers to the claimant themselves (As they are technically able to pursue their own case). Of course, if they would like the litigation friend to continue, we would simply organise a form of authority for the child to sign to allow the nominated person to continue.
In this scenario, there is no need for the infant approval hearing and all compensation would simply be paid to the claimant as it is in any adult’s personal injury claim.
So if you are looking to pursue a claim on behalf of a child, do not hesitate to contact us today. This is something that we have extensive experience in handling and will ensure that the claim treated no different to an adult’s personal injury claim.
