‘Nothing but a lie’: Judge to refer material from failed €60,000 personal injury claim to DPP

A judge has warned a Dublin man he may face criminal charges for attempting to deceive the legal system to gain money under false pretences.

Judge John Martin told Conor Fallon, a 30-year-old personal trainer, that what he told the Circuit Civil Court during a €60,000 damages claim related to a car crash was “nothing but a lie”.

Fallon, of Cushlawn Park, Tallaght, was told the documents from his personal injuries case would be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for consideration.

He had claimed he suffered severe neck and lower back injuries when he was rear ended at traffic lights on Leopardstown Road, Dublin in September 2023.

Lawyers for Axa, insurer for two of the defendants, claimed the contact was so minimal that it could not have caused the injuries complained of.

Earlier, barrister Neal McDonald suggested Fallon had lied to a consultant in emergency medicine who examined him on behalf of Axa, when he said he had not been involved in any previous or subsequent accidents.

McDonald, who appeared with Liz Lyons of Hayes McGrath Solicitors, told the court Fallon had subsequently overturned and wrote off his mother’s SUV after causing €18,000 damage to a parked truck. He fled the scene but found gardaí waiting for him when he arrived home.

The judge, having risen to allow the parties time for talks, returned and was told Fallon was withdrawing his claim, which could be struck out.

“You made a false statement or you have misled the court, either perjuring yourself or knowingly made a false statement in the course of an investigation,” he said after asking Fallon to return to the witness box.

The judge told Fallon he “could not have believed this to be true” when he informed the consultant he had not been involved in another accident.

“It was nothing but a lie,” he said.

The judge said it was a very serious matter that Fallon had come into court knowingly setting out to deceive the system in the hope of gaining money by false pretences.

“I view this as a very serious matter and I am referring documents in the case to the DPP,” he said. “All of the papers I have received will be retained on the court file.”

The judge said every person was entitled to be fairly and properly compensated for injuries suffered, adding that Fallon’s case had been “up against it” on the minimal impact issue.

“To compound the situation with perjury and to make a false statement to deceive a doctor or a court solely for the basis of compensation was a very serious matter and must be considered by the DPP,” he said, adding that there was no indication of any wrongdoing on the part of Fallon’s legal team.