Stichting Beer impuls, founded by Amsterdam victim lawyers, encourages, among other things, the development of young talent with an interest in the legal field of liability and personal injury. In that context, the foundation has - for the third year in a row - issued a national thesis prize. One master's thesis in the field of liability law and/or personal injury could be submitted to the board of the foundation per registered department (university).
The professional jury on behalf of the foundation, consisting of Prof. C.C. van Dam, Dr. F.Th. Kremer and J.M. Beer, examined the entries and on May 23rd the thesis prize was awarded to the author of the winning thesis, Ms. Idya Karimi/Molengraaff Institute, University of Utrecht. The subject of her thesis ‘The loss of working capacity of young children in personal injury law’ is subtitled ‘The dark side of the comparison with and without an accident’.
It is described that the premise of full compensation implies that a comparison of two situations, the actual and the hypothetical, is necessary. The author indicates that using statistical data to map the hypothetical situation can quickly lead to discrimination and discusses ways to avoid it.
The subject of damages assessment, and especially in cases of loss of work capacity, in young children is of great significance for personal injury practice. The author takes an original and relevant angle by including the conflict with the principle of non-discrimination.
After careful consideration, therefore, the jury decided that Idya Karimi, along with the department of the Molengraaff Institute at Utrecht University, deserved the thesis award. ‘The combination of a relevant subject, depth, readability and an individual vision led the jury to make this choice,’ the jury said.
For more information about the thesis award or the foundation, please contact us at info@beerimpuls.nl. For more information about the thesis award and the other activities of the Bear Impulse Foundation, see also www.beerimpuls.nl.