Under the Medical Practitioners Act 2007, dentists are recognised as medical practitioners and as a result they have obligations similar to that of medical practitioners to perform dental procedures to a high standard.

Dental negligence claims are very complex and to prove that a dentist has acted negligently in his treatment of a patient is a challenging task. The law provides the opportunity for a claimant to recover compensation if it can be shown on the balance of probability that the treatment the claimant received was carried out in a negligent fashion by the dental practitioner involved and that this directly caused or contributed to the injury.

It is recognised by the Irish Legal System that dental negligence claims are more complex than other Personal Injury law and the Injuries Board will refuse jurisdiction to deal with same.

There are a number of types of claims you can make against a dentist including claims in respect of nerve damage, root canal treatment cavity filling and restorative dentistry.

For your dental negligence claim to have legal standing, it must be made within 2 years of the date of knowledge. There are some exceptions to this including in cases of a misdiagnosis and where the patient was a minor under the age of 18 years.

If you have any queries regarding the issues raised, please contact our office for helpful and impartial advice.

ELMAGH KIERNAN
[email protected]