ACT Supreme Court awards Daniel Meas damages after fatal Canberra Avenue crash

Daniel Meas, 21, was just 10 months old when the fatal crash occurred on Canberra Avenue in February 2003.

His parents' car was stationary at a set of traffic lights when it was rear-ended by another vehicle, which was driven by Michael John Tipping.

The force of the impact ejected Mr Meas from his baby capsule, breaking his jaw and left leg.

He went into cardiac arrest at Canberra Hospital about three hours later but survived, albeit with brain damage.

Mr Meas' father, Veasna Meas, was rendered unconscious by the crash, though he also pulled through.

The same tragically could not be said for Mr Meas' mother, Stacey Meas, or her baby daughter.

Doctors managed to deliver Mr Meas' little sister, Courtney, by caesarean section, but she died a few days later.

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When a baby suffers brain damage, it is difficult, if not impossible, to assess the ongoing effects of the injury until they reach adulthood.

That is why it took nearly 20 years for a lawsuit brought against Mr Tipping by Mr Meas' litigation guardian, Christine Anne Adcock, to reach trial in the ACT Supreme Court last year.

At the trial, which began in November 2022, Mr Tipping did not dispute that he was liable for negligence.

That meant Justice Geoffrey Kennett only had to determine the appropriate quantum of damages.

The judge decided that question on Wednesday, awarding Mr Meas $6,085,323.21, plus interest.

In his decision, Justice Kennett detailed how Mr Meas had struggled with his schooling.

These days, the 21-year-old rarely leaves the house and has limited interests outside of gaming.

The court heard from a number of neurologists, neuropsychiatrists and rehabilitation physicians.

With the exception of one doctor, whose evidence Justice Kennett put to one side, the experts agreed Mr Meas suffered from a neurocognitive disorder caused by the crash.

They also agreed he had a chronic adjustment disorder, "with depressed mood", which was connected with the grief he felt at the loss of his mother.

Eventually settling on the sum of more than $6 million, Justice Kennett awarded money for non-economic loss, loss of future income and superannuation, and out-of-pocket expenses.

In doing so, the judge found the unemployed Mr Meas was unlikely to do jobs that would have been available to him if he was not brain damaged.

The total figure also included sums to cover the costs of past and future care, and services that will help Mr Meas manage his money.

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