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Expert Medical Negligence Solicitors

In order to bring a successful medical negligence claim, you must satisfy both stages of a two-stage legal test.

The burden is on the Claimant to satisfy the legal test. This is done by obtaining witness evidence and independent expert evidence.

If you cannot establish that there has been a breach of duty, or that the injury was avoidable, then your claim will fail.

Medical negligence claims are often very complex, which is why you should always speak to a specialist solicitor with experience in this field.

Choosing the right solicitor, who is familiar with the complex field of law, and who knows which experts and barristers to instruct, can make all the difference to the outcome of your case.

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Generally speaking, medical negligence claims take between 2 to 3 years to conclude.

However, there will always be exceptions. The duration of your case will be influenced by a range of factors. For example:

• we sometimes experience delays in receiving disclosure of medical records,
• different experts within different fields of medicine may have longer turnaround times to produce reports,
• and some cases often require expert input from a range of experts.

The duration of a claim will also be impacted by the liability position adopted by the Defendant; if liability is admitted, we may be able to conclude the claim quicker than if liability was to be disputed.

If Court proceedings are required, this will cause the duration of the claim to be prolonged. 

Every claim is different and the value of a medical negligence claim depends upon the nature of the injuries sustained and the impact that the injury has had upon you. 

When a patient is compensated upon succeeding with their claim, they usually receive compensation over three heads of loss.

The first is referred to as “General Damages” and is intended to compensate the patient for:

• their avoidable pain,
• suffering,
• and loss of amenity arising from their physical and psychological injuries.

The value of this head of loss is calculated by reference to the Court’s Judicial College Guidelines and past case law.

We often have to obtain expert evidence to address your current condition and your future prognosis, so that we may understand how your injuries might impact you in the future. 

The second head of loss is referred to as your “Past Special Damages” and is intended to compensate you for the financial losses you have encountered as a result of your avoidable injuries.

Such losses might include losses such as:

• lost income for the time required off from work,
• treatment costs,
• travel costs,
• or care and assistance for example.

The third head of loss is referred to as “Future Special Damages” and is intended to include all future financial losses which a patient might encounter because of their injuries.

This might include:

• the cost of ongoing treatment,
• aids and equipment,
• adaptations to property
• or lost earnings where you have been unable to return to work for example.  

Medical negligence claims are proven by the evidence obtained during the course of the investigation conducted by your Solicitor.

Evidence can be presented in different forms. Usually, the Court will place a significant amount of evidential weight upon the content of your medical records, because these are a contemporaneous record of the treatment received and were produced without any claim in mind.

Rarely are the medical records alone sufficient to evidence the extent of the injuries sustained, or that they were caused by a negligent mistake. Therefore, independent expert evidence is often required to report upon the standard of the treatment received, and the mechanism by which any negligent treatment resulted in avoidable injury.

Independent expert evidence is not only confined to issues of liability. Often we are required to obtain ‘quantum’ expert evidence, where an independent expert will report upon:

• your current condition,
• the nature of any ongoing symptoms,
• and how the injuries may impact you in the future.

Expert evidence is not confined to medical experts either. Sometimes we need to obtain evidence from Forensic Accountant experts if an injury has impacted a person’s business performance for example.

Or, we might need to obtain expert evidence from an Architect, if the nature of the injuries has caused you to experience difficulties in accessing or using your home.

Going to Court is always a possibility. But, is quite uncommon in clinical negligence claims. 

Regardless of whether liability is admitted or denied, if the claim continues to enjoy good prospects of success, and where settlement cannot be achieved, then Court proceedings may need to be commenced.

Your solicitor, often with assistance from a barrister, will lodge the necessary papers at Court. The claim then follows the Court process.

The Court process is designed to narrow the issues in dispute between the Parties.

For example, part of the Court process will involve the exchanging of witness and expert evidence.

It is a ‘cards on the table’ approach so that each Party can understand the evidence being relied upon by the other.

Often, settlement of the claim will be achieved at some point during the Court process. However, where a settlement cannot be reached, the claim will proceed to a trial in front of a Judge.

The Judge will hear evidence from both sides and will decide whether the legal test has been sufficiently satisfied for the claim to succeed and for damages to be awarded, or whether the claim should fail.

In cases where liability has been admitted, but the Parties have been unable to agree a settlement figure, there remains a possibility for a trial.

This is known as a “Quantum Only Trial” where a Judge is asked to decide upon the value of the claim, rather than addressing issues of liability.

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