What you should expect of your solicitor

1. Legal advice and support

Free initial half hour meeting to discuss the merits of your potential claim at their offices or in your home, if mobility necessitates a visit.

Advice on the most appropriate method of funding your claim, whether:

• Legal Aid
• No Win No Fee (Conditional Fees)
• Legal Expenses Insurance
• After the event insurance
• Privately

Consider with you what each of these various dispute resolution processes can provide in terms of complaint, the court or an Alternative dispute resolution process both in the immediate, short term, medium term and long term.

Attendance and representation of your interest at an inquest.

Advise you on the approach to case management from start to completion of your claim.

2. Clinical negligence.

All firms on this site hold a Legal Aid Board clinical negligence franchise - identifying it as a specialist clinical negligence firm.

You shall receive specialist advice from experienced team members. The appropriate team is assembled to progress your claim. They may include the following team members.

Your medical experts (chosen from the appropriate medical discipline).

• Your barrister.
• Your witnesses (which may include family members).

They will advise you and liase with you in relation to any media interest.

They will advise you about a support network, whether that is your family , Action for Victims of Medical Accidents (AVMA), counselling or other support agencies. They can provide to you a list of all those appropriate organisations.

3. Examples of clinical negligence claims.

• Birth injury.
• Injury at operation or dissatisfaction with the outcome.
• Failure to treat or diagnose a condition.
• Lack of consent for medical procedure, whether in school, hospital or GP practice.
• Complaint against a medical practitioner, dentist, optician or therapist.
• Claim against a therapist providing Alternative therapy/complimentary medicine - such as an Acupuncturist, counsellor (possibly false memory implant) or Aromatherapist and others.
  Involvement in a clinical trial.
• Mental Health Act issues.

The above is just a sample of possible areas of claim.

Legal hurdles to be surmounted.

• Proof that someone owed to you a duty to take care of your wellbeing and not to cause injury to you.
• Proof that there has been a breach of that duty to take care of you.
• A recognised harm causing harm to you.
• Damage (injury) and/or other losses have resulted

Over 90% of cases resolve (whether by a payment or not) without reaching the courts for a judge to resolve the issues.

In a clinical negligence claim, it is predominantly the issue of “showing that the injury was caused by the breach of duty of care”, which is usually the most difficult limb to surmount.

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