A Canberra woman has won more than $4.22 million in damages after she suffered a severe brain injury in a car accident.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Medical experts said the crash meant the woman's brain now resembled that of an alcoholic or drug addict.
She has a reduced life expectancy of about 60, and is more likely to develop dementia or Alzheimer's.
Other injuries also meant it would be harder for her to have children, a fact which caused her to not feel like a "proper woman".
The woman, then 20, was driving along Ginninderra Drive in Latham on March 8, 2006, when another motorist ran the lights and hit her car. The impact caused the woman's car to then hit a light pole.
She suffered numerous skull fractures and spent the next three months in hospitals in Canberra and Sydney.
The resulting brain damage caused significant physical, neurological, and neurocognitive impairment. Physical impairment included continuing headaches, vertigo, fatigue, hearing loss in her left ear and a misaligned right eye.
The woman had been unable to keep a job since the crash, suffered depression, could not multitask or handle "complex" situations, and would require assistance and care to live in the community.
One doctor said the woman had difficulties regulating her emotions, a propensity to be outspoken, lacked insight into the full nature of her impairments, and could be impulsive. Experts agreed there would be little future improvement and her capacity for paid employment would be severely restricted.
The woman, represented by Ken Cush and Associates, launched a compensation claim against the other driver, who admitted liability, in the Supreme Court.
During the hearing the woman told the court she had become frustrated with her life.
"For example, all my friends … they've all got careers … and they are all … travelling overseas and buying houses, and things like that, and I'm left behind because I can't have a career any more, and I can't go overseas.
"I get upset because, and frustrated, that my brain doesn't work the same way any more. I can't think. I can't multitask any more. I can't solve problems any more. I have short-term memory loss.
"To live day-in and day-out being disappointed in what I'm capable to do now is very hard."
Justice John Burns handed down his decision on Friday, eight years and one day after the accident.
The woman, now 28, was awarded $4,227,676.32, including $375,000 in general damages, $1.25 million for future wage loss, and more than $1.77 million for her future care.
The court ordered the cash be administered by a fund manager, as she was incapable of managing her own financial affairs.
"I accept that the plaintiff's behavioural and cognitive impairments compromise her ability to find, secure and maintain employment, and to a very significant degree," Justice Burns wrote.
"She has a future life expectancy, subject to development of dementia, of just over 60 years.
"She will have to live with the disabilities and deficits caused by the accident for a long time."
The judge is yet to decide on legal costs.
