Clinical Negligence Victims Must Be Able To Get Justice For Injuries

From Law Society

Patients who have been harmed by negligent care should be able to get the expert legal advice they need, the Law Society has insisted.

Responding to the Department of Health consultation on fixed recoverable costs in low value clinical negligence cases, Law Society president Robert Bourns said:

This is an issue we have campaigned hard on and we are pleased that the government listened to us and other organisations and amended their proposals.

The proposal as it stands is to apply fixed costs to claims up to £25,000. The original plan was for fixed fees to be applied on claims up to the value of £250,000, which would have included claims for people who have been very seriously harmed.
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Louise Tyler, Member of the Law Society Specialist Clinical Negligence Panel at Wilson Browne Solicitors comments

As a specialist  Clinical Negligence Lawyer I endorse what the Law Society say and have responded to the DOH consultation in the same manner.  Fixed recoverable costs should not be introduced in clinical negligence claims and certainly not without a working party involving everyone who is involved in these proceedings. All specialist Clinical Negligence Lawyers and organisations such as SCIL (Society of Injury Lawyers), AvMA (Action against medical accidents) and APIL (Assc of personal Injury Lawyers) have urged the DOH in their responses to the consultation to think again as the most vulnerable in society will be most affected by these proposals and will be denied access to justice.

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