In the aftermath of the disaster, claims for compensation were made by some of those who had been injured or bereaved. These included claims from some police officers who had been on duty. They were not only against SYP but also other parties. By mid-August 1989, hundreds of claims had been made.
No party accepted liability, so it was expected that the claims would proceed to court. However, this meant that civil proceedings might take place before any criminal trials. If any SYP officers were facing prosecution, they could have refused to give evidence at a civil hearing.
To avoid this problem arising, on 30 November 1989, SYP announced that it intended to settle any “bona fide claims” for compensation out of court—but that it did not accept any liability. A large number of payments were made, at different levels depending on the nature of the claim. These included payments to 16 police officers.
SYP invited the other parties against whom claims had been made to join the out-of-court settlements. All declined, so SYP issued contribution claims against them, with the aim of requiring them to contribute towards the sums it had paid out.
The High Court determined that court hearings into the matter should take place in October 1990. The hearings commenced on 2 October 1990. On 5 October, SYP’s Counsel requested an adjournment. On 8 October, it was announced that the parties had reached an agreement.
Though aspects of the civil litigation and contribution proceedings were referred to in the HIP Report, SYP’s preparation for them has not previously been examined in depth. During the early stages of its investigation, the IOPC identified from documentary evidence that there was a strong link between the way SYP prepared for the contribution proceedings and the way it prepared for the generic hearing of the Popper Inquests. This led the IOPC to include the contribution proceedings within this term of reference for its investigation, even though the brief hearings meant the amount of evidence presented by any party in court was minimal.
