Viewing post categorized under: Litigation

We have recently dealt with a medical negligence claim for a client and successfully secured compensation.

The claim involved cataract surgery with anaesthetic administered to the Claimant during the same.

The client had attended hospital to have cataract surgery. She had a left eye cataract and this was uneventful. She returned to the same hospital to have right eye cataract however, complications arose.

We sent a Letter of Claim to the Defendant hospital after our investigations, and input from our own expert evidence however, liability was disputed. The Claimant alleged that the Defendant had been negligent in delivering injectable local anaesthetic into the right eye via a retrobulbar block technique; planned and documented a peribulbar block but in fact attempted to use a retrobulbar technique; perforating the globe of the Claimant’s right eye and continuing to insert the needle far enough into the back of the eye to cause penetration of the retina close to the macular; directed the needle through the Claimant’s eye ball so that the local anaesthetic was deposited near the macular; utilised a 40mm long needle which was far too long for a peribulbar block and failed to obtain any or any adequately informed consent from the Claimant as to the use of the technique and explain the relevant risks and benefit of alternative techniques.

We are often asked by our clients how much it will cost to bring a claim to court. The answer is wide ranging due to the nature of different disputes and also depending on the complexity of a case and how much work would be involved. Disputes such as Will disputes, contract disputes and property disputes are covered under the term, Civil Litigation.

Can you just send a letter?

We are sometimes asked to draft a letter before action which lets the other party know what the issues are and what is required to rectify the dispute. This is usually the first contact between the parties via a Solicitor. Most clients presume a simple letter should be quick and cheap to send.  However, we are required to undertake a substantial amount of work prior to being in a position to send an initial letter. The work involved includes taking all of the instructions and carrying out a review of documents to ensure that what the client is saying is true and accurate. We have a professional reputation to comply with rules of behaviour expected of solicitors, by ensuring that any information we provide to another party is accurate. We are required to check our client’s ID and obtain electronic ID searches. We then have to draft the letter and send to our client for approval, which often results in amendments being made or further discussions. There may then be further documents to consider if the dispute is moving along. This could take several hours of time. Once a response is received, we then have to review the same and advise further. Overall, undertaking the initial work prior to going to court can be quite costly.

Costs to Trial

Often, if the claim is not resolved at this stage, there will then be the option to proceed to court. For some disputes of lower value, and with less complex issues to resolve, the costs could still easily amount to £20,000.00 to £30,000.00 plus VAT, Court fees and Barrister’s fees, if the matter proceeds to a final hearing. However, costs could of course exceed this, depending on the nature of the work involved. We have dealt with cases which are more complex and the costs budget has amounted to £60,000.00 plus VAT for all costs and disbursements. Sometimes, cases are capable of settlement after issue of proceedings but before the Trial, in which case, costs will be less. Decisions to proceed to Court are therefore serious.

Win or Lose

The rule regarding costs is that you are responsible for your own solicitor’s costs. If you win the dispute or settle on favourable terms, you may be awarded these costs to be paid by the opposition. However if you lose the dispute, you may be ordered to pay your opponent’s costs as well as your own.

Overall, litigation is risky and costly. Parties should try, where possible, to resolve the matter amicably or use ADR to try and narrow the issues before proceeding to Court action.

If you are involved in a dispute, please feel free to contact one of our Team members to discuss how we can assist with this.

If you have had a successful accident claim, then you may be entitled to receive compensation.

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We have successfully completed a claim for a client involved in an accident at work.

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Debt can be daunting. A lot of people don’t like to talk about debt because it feels almost “taboo”. Many will try to ignore it in the hopes that it will just go away, but in reality, it spirals out of control

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We have successfully concluded a claim for one of our clients following a tripping accident

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During our work, assisting clients with disputes, we often are instructed in connection with breakdowns in relationship between neighbours, primarily over land, which forms the boundary between properties.

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We have recently concluded a claim for one of our clients following a tripping accident.

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We recognise that not receiving proper medical care can have devastating consequences for you or your loved ones.

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We regularly act for Landlord and Tenants in connection with property disputes and we have written this article to provide information to Tenants who may be having difficulties with their property.

Firstly, tenants should be aware that on the 20th March 2019, a new law came into force, which is the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018.

This Act was enacted to amend the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 which made it a requirement that all residential properties were provided and maintained which was in a state of fitness for the human habitation.

The 2018 act meant that this included both new and existing tenancies and that landlords were not only responsible for the structural maintenance of a property but also landlords were responsible for the safe and healthy living conditions their tenants were residing in.

Tenants that find their homes are not fit for human habitation can take their landlord to Court and the Court can order the landlord make repairs and address problems. Furthermore, tenants may also be entitled to compensation for any health conditions that have arose or been exasperated because of the conditions of their home.

The Act states that landlords are responsible for fixing a lot of problems but there are some exceptions to be aware of, such as problems caused by tenant behaviour and events like fires, storms and floods that are beyond the landlord’s control.

The first step in determining whether you are entitled to redress under the Act is to identify what the problem is and what issue this is causing. For example, problems with damp, lack of natural light, lack of ventilation, unsafe layout, or excess heat or cold.

If you are having difficulties with disrepair, speak to one of our colleagues today to see how we can assist. In some cases, we may be able to deal with this under a “No Win No Fee” agreement.