Briton falls off chair, to sue government for 300,000 pounds

LONDON - A British civil servant who fell off his swivel chair and was badly disabled is suing his government department for 300,000 pounds.

Gian-Paul De Vito-Tracey, 39, will claim that he was left 80 percent disabled for life after he hit his head on a wall, The Sun reported Monday.

He held a senior position at the Department of Work and Pensions and, in 2008, he fell off the newly-issued swivel chair.

The media report said that his lawyers will argue in court that the accident had a “profound and permanent effect” and it left him at a severe disadvantage in the job market. The bump caused “downgrading of general intellectual functioning”.

The claim is for pain, suffering and “loss of amenity”.

Court papers state that the civil servant experienced “slowed speed of information processing, impaired executive function, severe verbal communication difficulty and mild to moderate word-finding difficulties”.

Negligence and breach of equipment regulations is also alleged in the official’s claim and a neuropsychologist has backed it up.