Richard Bruton
Question:127 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the estimated costs associated with claims being handled by the State Claims Agency over the past three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10108/03]
Written Answers - State Claims Agency.
The State Claims Agency, SCA, has been in operation since December 2001. Since its establishment, it has taken over the management of 1,885 claims.
Some 115 of these claims have been closed by the SCA at a cost of €1.28 million. Of this amount, 27% was paid in legal fees and in fees to other experts such as medical and engineering consultants.
An additional 88 claims have been settled or have been the subject of court awards, but final costs figures are not yet available as legal costs in these cases are still under negotiation.
Prior to the establishment of the State Claims Agency, claims were not centrally co-ordinated. Because the agency has been in existence for only a relatively short period of time and in view of the small number of claims closed, it is not yet in a position to identify any trend in terms of the total cost of claims. However, this is something my Department will be monitoring in conjunction with the agency, and I am particularly determined that compensation claims will be vigorously defended to eliminate any perception that the State might be perceived as a soft touch for such claims.