Military veterans lose High Court battle
A group of former British servicemen and women suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder lost a High Court battle for compensation today.
Had the group of nearly 2,000 potential claimants been successful the case would have resulted in a compensation payout in excess of £100 million.
The hearing centred on 15 ‘lead’ cases, which had been prepared for the lengthy trial to illustrate the major points of the lawsuit.
The action centred on an accusation that the Ministry of Defence had failed to adequately prepare service personnel for their inevitable exposure to the ‘horrors of war’ and that their stress as a consequence had not been properly identified or treated.
The veterans had been involved in many different conflicts, including the Falklands, Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Gulf War.
Stephen Irwin QC, for the claimants, told the court: ‘War is what soldiers should expect and it is what they sign up for – it is what they join the Army for and why sailors join the Navy.
‘It is also what their masters should expect and they should provide for this exposure to the horrors of war. In a sentence we say they did not.’
Robert Jay QC, for the ministry, insisted that post-traumatic stress disorder – the condition most of the claimants suffer from – was not officially recognised until the late 1980s and added that the soldiers had received treatment that was in line with the best practice at the time they were affected.
