Three ex-Irish rugby players to sue IRFU in landmark concussion case

Three former Irish rugby players, two of them ex-internationals, have lodged High Court proceedings against the IRFU, World Rugby and their respective former provinces.

David Corkery, Declan Fitzpatrick and Ben Marshall lodged filings in the High Court yesterday.

All three are to be represented by Dublin law firm, Maguire McLafferty LLP, which disclosed last July that it was preparing a number of cases on behalf of former Irish players concerning concussion and brain injury.

Corkery, who represented Ireland 27 times between 1994 and 1999, including at the 1995 World Cup, is taking action against Munster Rugby, the IRFU and World Rugby.

Fitzpatrick, capped seven times for Ireland in 2012 and 2013, is taking a case against Ulster Rugby, the IRFU and World Rugby. The Ulster prop retired in 2015 after suffering a series of concussions.

Marshall represented both Leinster and Connacht before, at 26, announcing his retirement in 2017 on foot of medical advice.

In July, proceedings were initiated on behalf of a group of professional and semi-professional players against World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union and the Welsh Rugby Union. Members of the group have been diagnosed with early-onset dementia and other irreversible neurological impairments.

The claimants, who include former Wales captain Ryan Jones and England's 2003 World Cup-winning hooker Steve Thompson, argue that the sport's governing bodies were negligent in that they failed to take reasonable action to protect players from permanent injury caused by repetitive concussive and sub-concussive blows.