A 37-YEAR-OLD woman left paralysed after a motorway accident yesterday

was awarded record compensation of #3.4m.

Ms Christine Leung, from Solihull, west Midlands, suffered severe

spinal injuries when the car in which she was a passenger crashed after

swerving to avoid luggage which fell from another vehicle on the M3 in

Surrey four years ago.

The award by the High Court in Birmingham was said by her solicitors

to be the biggest yet for a personal injury. It covers compensation,

loss of earnings, and the cost of employing two nurses to care for her.

The award was made against the driver of the car from which the

luggage fell.

Ms Leung, who was born in Hong Kong, is unable to move without

assistance and needs 24-hour medical supervision.

She breathes only with the aid of an automatic breathing support and

will be totally reliant on the care of others for the rest of her life.

''My life has changed drastically because of the accident but I was a

very active person and I want to try to get out and do at least some of

the things I did before,'' she said yesterday. ''I am optimistic and

determined not to just lie in bed and get depressed.''

Solicitor Stuart Henderson said: ''Christine suffered an appalling

accident which robbed her of a career and of many of the things we all

take for granted in life.

''The money cannot begin to compensate for what she has lost but it

will help her lead as active a life as her health allows her.''

Ms Leung, who has a 17-year-old son, had a career in marketing at the

time of the accident.