In the case of Cadet Car Rental v Pinder [2019] UKPC 4 (Cadet), the Judicial Committee of Her Majesty’s Privy Council (The Bahamas’ final court of appeal), recently effected a sea-change in Bahamian law and practice regarding the calculation of loss of future earnings in personal injury and fatal accident cases. In a 9-page judgment, the Privy Council quashed the appellant’s award for loss of future earnings of $93,238.96 and substituted an award of $650,043.21. In its ruling, the Privy Council clarified the proper use of the Ogden Tables[1] and their application within The Bahamas. This unanticipated judgment has unsettled both legal practitioners and insurance companies, and those who have regained their equilibrium have begun to re-examine the correct and appropriate calculations of loss of future earnings. The questions of the moment are whether The Bahamas is ready for the practical implications of the decision in Cadet? How will Bahamian courts apply the Ogden Tables, a construct based upon UK statistics, within The Bahamas, when the two nations and the relevant facts and circumstances present in each nation such as the cost of living etc. differ so significantly? And, what will The Bahamian courts do when the opportunity arises to rule on this matter again?
