The mother of a six-year-old child, who broke an arm while gallivanting around a seating bay in a Dublin restaurant, has withdrawn a €60,000 personal injury claim against the franchisee of the Eddie Rockets eatery.
Belinda O’Connor, mother of nine-year-old Darragh O’Connor, of Moatview Drive, Priorswood, Dublin, withdrew the claim against Sunspel Limited after Judge Terence O’Sullivan had viewed a CCTV video of the incident in the Eddie Rockets City Diner in Swords, Co Dublin, three years ago.
Barrister Philip Fennell told the Circuit Civil Court Tuesday a full defence denying any negligence to the claim had been entered on behalf of the defendant.
Judge O’Sullivan, after viewing the video prior to anyone giving evidence on the child’s behalf, said the boy, then aged six, was under the control of his parents at the time.
“I have seen what went on. The child was gallivanting around behind his mother and had ended up in another seating position,” Judge O’Sullivan said.
He told counsel for the boy and his mother that while the group of five had been directed to sit in a seating bay for four persons they had not been directed by Sunspel to have the child sit on the edge of the seat facing outwards at right angles to the group.
Bizarre
Judge O’Sullivan said it was bizarre to blame Sunspel, of Phibsborough Place, Dublin, for having caused the child to fall out of the bay because he had been permitted to sit in that particular way. The boy had initially been sitting on the inside and had climbed behind his mother to the edge.
The court had been told the boy fell from an overloaded bench seat after staff had directed five people to sit in a booth area designed for four.
Judge O’Sullivan said the case was not one destined to succeed based on what he had seen and clearly had just been an accident. He was concerned the child’s mother could face an order for legal costs.
He said he appreciated the child had suffered a bad injury and felt the boy’s counsel should take further instructions in relation to the matter.
Shortly afterwards, when told the claim was withdrawn, Judge O’Sullivan said he felt this was the sensible thing to do. Sunspel did not seek an order for its legal costs against the boy’s mother.