Irwin Mitchell’s specialised public liability team helped a young woman that was involved in an accident when she attended a ballet lesson.
The 19 year old woman was involved in an accident in November 2009 when she was attending her third ballet lesson at the Ballet Society. She had been learning ballet since the age of 5 and therefore had considerable ballet experience. During the women’s first lesson she was informed she was not allowed to use rosin, a substance which she has always used to rub onto her shoes in powdered form to reduce slippage and improve grip.
The woman began her third ballet lesson by doing the usual warm up and stretching exercises at the bar. She was completing a manoeuvre called a double pirouette and began rotating in the other direction she slipped. She fell and landed on her left side and had to move to the side of the class on her bottom as she was unable to weight bear on her ankle.
The woman was was taken to hospital by ambulance and X-rays revealed she had broken her ankle, close to the ankle joint. She was then transferred onto a ward and four days later underwent an operation to fit a metal plate and pins into her ankle. She was discharged from hospital seven days after being admitted.
The Woman had been living in student accommodation, however, due to her injuries she returned home to be cared for by her parents. She was only able to be mobile on crutches and therefore hired a wheelchair in order to go out. She was taking heavy duty Paracetamol to manage the pain.
The Woman had to put her studying on hold for a few weeks following her accident, however, her Lecturers at University became less understanding and the Claimant was forced to return to her lectures approximately three weeks post accident.
After the accident the woman decided to contact Irwin Mitchell’s specialised public liability team and experienced solicitors, Rosalyn Holmes, was able to deal with her claim. The defendant denied liability but after negotiations Rosalyn was able to secure the woman £10,000 in compensation in an out of court settlement.
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