A father who neglected his daughter and subjected her to psychological cruelty and neglect was yesterday ordered to pay her almost €83,000 in damages.

In a suit for damages in 2008, Nicola Portelli said her father, Michael Angelo Cordina, had failed in his legal obligations to maintain and support her.

Mr Cordina denied the allegation of neglect, claiming that his daughter had been manipulated by her mother, from whom he was separated.

Magistrate Joanne Vella Cuschieri heard Ms Portelli testify that her father was lazy, abusive and even violent in regard to her, her mother and her siblings.

He had destroyed her self-esteem. Ms Portelli’s testimony was confirmed by her mother and a former teacher, who recalled that, while she was still young, Ms Portelli has shown signs of anxiety at school.

A psychologist who examined Ms Portelli and interviewed the parties concluded that Mr Cordina totally lacked parenting skills, was not amenable to persuasion and was suspicious, symptoms that fell within the parameters of paranoid personality disorder.

A parent who suffered from such a condition would have a negative effect on his children’s self-awareness and could instil in them a sense of shame.

Ms Portelli had been emotionally abused by her father.

The court experts noted that Ms Portelli recalled her father’s taunts for being overweight, even singing a rhyme referring to her as a pig. He did this about four times a day.

When her young sister was born, her father threatened that she would be locked up on the roof without food and her toys would be given to the baby.

Experts concluded that she suffered an eight per cent psychiatric and psychological disability.

The court said there was no doubt that psychological disability gave rise to a claim for damages in the same manner as a physical disability would.