Damages (Return on Investment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Citation | 2022 NI c 1 |
(1) Before section 1 of the Damages Act 1996 insert—Before Schedule 1 to the Damages Act 1996, insert Schedule C1 as set out in the Schedule to this Act. (1) The Department may by regulations make any incidental, supplementary, consequential, transitional, transitory or saving provision that it considers appropriate for the purposes of, in connection with or for giving full effect to this Act.(2) Regulations under subsection (1) may modify any statutory provision (including this Act) .may not be made unless a draft of the regulations has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, the Assembly, if they modify Northern Ireland legislation or an Act of Parliament;otherwise, are subject to negative resolution.In this Act— (1) Sections 3 to 6 come into operation on the day after this Act receives Royal Assent.(2) The other provisions of this Act come into operation on such day or days as the Department may by order appoint.(3) An order under subsection (2) may include transitional, transitory or saving provision.This Act may be cited as the Damages (Return on Investment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022. The rate-assessor must review any original rate of return.A review under sub-paragraph (1) must be started by the rate-assessor on the appointed day.a rate of return to which paragraph 27(1) applies, orthe position of there being no rate of return to which paragraph 27(1) applies.The rate-assessor must review every subsequent rate of return.on 1st July 2024, orearlier as is required by the Department of Justice;on the day after the last day of the 5-year period, orearlier within the 5-year period as is required by the Department of Justice.Where a review under sub-paragraph (1) is started earlier by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) (a) (ii) or (2) (b) (ii) , it is to be treated as an extra review that does not affect the starting date for the first review of 1st July 2024 or the running of the 5-year period in relation to the previous review (and no 5-year period runs under sub-paragraph (2) in relation to the extra review) .for the time being (including by reason of an extra review as mentioned in sub-paragraph (3) ) , andsubsequently to an original rate of return as described in paragraph 1(3) (a) (including as a result of a review under sub-paragraph (1) conducted from time to time by virtue of the continuing operation of sub-paragraph (2) (a) and (b) ) ,the 5-year period is the period of 5 years beginning with the day on which the previous review of a rate of return must be started (ignoring an extra review as mentioned in sub-paragraph (3) ) .A review of a rate of return under paragraph 1(1) or 2(1) must be concluded by the rate-assessor within the 90-day period.For the purposes of this paragraph, the 90-day period is the period of 90 days beginning with the day on which the review must be started by the rate-assessor.paragraphs 5 to 7,paragraphs 9 and 10,paragraphs 12 and 13,paragraphs 19 to 21.A rate of return is to be set as a result of a review under paragraph 1(1) or 2(1) accordingly (plus see paragraph 23 as to reporting afterwards on the conduct of such a review) .different from the rate of return with which the review is concerned, orthe same as the rate of return with which the review is concerned.of any person whom the rate-assessor chooses to consult, andof any person whose advice the rate-assessor chooses to seek,The basis on which the rate-assessor is to make a rate determination in a review under paragraph 1(1) or 2(1) is as set out in sub-paragraph (2) .in the notional portfolio, andfor a period of 43 years.This is without prejudice to paragraphs 10 and 20 (with paragraph 10 to be met before paragraph 20 is met) .The notional portfolio is shown in the table in paragraph 12(3) .The Department of Justice may by regulations modify a period mentioned in paragraph 7(2) .Allowance must be made by the rate-assessor for the impact of inflation on the value of the return or investment to which paragraph 7(2) relates.the retail prices index, orsome published information relating to costs, earnings or other monetary factors as is, for use instead of the retail prices index, prescribed in regulations made by the Department of Justice.In sub-paragraph (2) , “the retail prices index” means the general index (for all items) published by the Statistics Board or, if that index is not published for a relevant month, any substituted index or index figures published by that Board.The standard adjustments must
- “(1) In determining the return to be expected from the investment of a sum awarded as damages for future pecuniary loss in an action for personal injury the court must, subject to and in accordance with rules of court made for the purposes of this section, take into account the rate of return set by the official rate-assessor.
- (2) Subsection (1) does not however prevent the court from taking a different rate of return into account if any party to the action shows that the different rate is more appropriate in the circumstances of the case.
- (3) Schedule C1 (which makes provision about setting the rate of return for the purpose of subsection (1) ) has effect.
- (4) In subsection (1) , the reference to the official rate-assessor is to—
- (a) if no regulations under paragraph (b) are in force, the Government Actuary (but, when that office is vacant, the Deputy Government Actuary) , or
- (b) a person appointed in place of the Government Actuary (including the Deputy as referred to in paragraph (a) ) by regulations made by the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland.
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