22 September 2021 - Written by Tom Carter
Illegality in Clinical Negligence Claims
A man with longstanding mental health issues walks into a pub with a can of petrol and a knife. He proceeds to pour the petrol on himself and says he is going to burn the pub down. The police are called, he is arrested and whilst in police custody, he undergoes a Ment...
7 September 2021 - Written by Philip Davy
Vicarious Liability and the Non-Delegable Duty in the Context of Dental Negligence Claims: Hughes v Rattan
For several years in the 2000s and 2010s, the law relating to vicarious liability and non-fault liability more generally was 'on the move'. However, in the last couple of years, the case law dealing with non-fault liability has bee...
14 July 2021 - Written by Nikhil Arora
Secondary Victims: Still Second-Class Claimants?
In King v Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust [2021] EWHC 1576 (QB), the High Court once again demonstrated the difficulties faced by Claimants who suffer psychiatric condi...
24 June 2021 - Written by Rochelle Rong & Alexandra Pountney
Meadows v Khan in the Supreme Court: Scope of Duty in Clinical Negligence Claims
In Meadows v Khan [2021] UKSC 21, the Supreme Court unanimously dismissed Ms Meadows' appeal, finding that there was no principled basis for excluding a clinical negligence claim from the ambit of the 'scope of duty principle' in the tort of negligence. The j...
11 May 2021 - Written by Richard Seabrook
Considerations of Consent, Capacity and Best Interests
Imagine the following scenario. A patient, known to have mental health issues, has been consenting to a proposed or potential course of medical treatment. Then, as the need to embark on that treatment crystalizes and becomes urgent, consent is withdrawn. The treatment...
29 April 2021 - Written by Patrick Limb QC
Cauda Equina: Tells & Tales About the "Horse's Tail"
Cauda equina syndrome is a rare and severe type of spinal stenosis. A narrowing of the spinal canal causes the nerves in the lower back to become severely compressed. Typically, but not exclusively, it results from a prolapsed disc bulge. The condition requires urgent...
20 April 2021 - Written by Cassandra Williams
Clinical Negligence Cases: When the Bolam Test Does Not Apply
The law requires medical practitioners to use diligence, care, knowledge, skill and caution in administering treatment to a patient. The question of whether a medical practitioner has met the requisite standard of care is often considered by reference to the test laid...
12 April 2021 - Written by Edward James
High Court Considers Whether Cardiac Surgery Leading to Re-Do Surgery Was Negligent
In Negus v Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust [2021] EWHC 643 (QB), the High Court considered whether an NHS Trust was...
1 April 2021 - Written by Thomas Herbert
Wrongful Birth, Wrongful Life & Negligence: Considering Toombes v Mitchell
Thomas Herbert's article on Lambert J's decision in Toombes v Mitchell [2020] EWHC 3506 (QB), which considered the correct interpretation of section 1 of the Congenital D...
17 March 2021 - Written by Christopher Lowe & Alexandra Pountney
Informed Consent: Updated GMC Guidance
The topic of consent has been increasingly contentious since the Supreme Court’s decision in Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board [2015] AC 1430, which shifted the focus from Bolam-style clinical paternalism to patient autonomy. ...
25 February 2021 - Written by Philip Godfrey
Cauda Equina Syndrome and Referrals for Investigations: High Court Rejects Claim for Delayed Scan
In Jarman v Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust [2021] EWHC 323 (QB), the Claimant brought a claim against the Defendant hospital for failing to promptly diagnose Cauda Equina Syndrome ("CES"). This case is of note for two reasons: ...
23 February 2021 - Written by Rachel Young & Thomas Herbert
Revisiting the Test of Material Contribution in Clinical Negligence Claims following Davies v Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust
In Davies v Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust [2021] EWHC 169 (QB), the High Court considered the question of causation in circumstances where the deceased had suffered from acute pneu...
19 February 2021 - Written by Cassandra Williams
Fundamental Dishonesty in Clinical Negligence Cases: Unreliable Does Not Necessarily Mean Dishonest
In Brint v Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust [2021] EWHC 290 (QB), HHJ Platts, sitting as a High Court Judge, declined to make a finding of fundamental ...
17 February 2021 - Written by Philip Godfrey
Non-Delegable Duties of Care and NHS-Funded Private Services
In Hopkins v (1) Akramy (2) Badger Group (3) NHS Commissioning Board [2020] EWHC 3445 (QB), the High Court considered, as a preliminary issue, whether an NHS Primary Care Trust ("P...
8 February 2021 - Written by Gareth McAloon
'Seconds Out!': Secondary Victim Claims Arising from Clinical Negligence to go to the Court of Appeal
Claims by secondary victims arising from clinical negligence have for many years been a battleground between Claimants and the NHS, particularly where the psychiatric damage that is the subject of the claim occurs many months after the purported breach of duty in...
26 January 2021 - Written by Shilpa Shah
Interim Payments on Account of Costs in Clinical Negligence Cases
Whilst clinical negligence practitioners are especially accomplished in ensuring that they properly advise their clients to claim an interim payment on account of damages when this best suits their client’s needs, the opportunity of seeking an interim payment on...
18 January 2021 - Written by Jason Cox
Limitation Practice in Clinical Negligence Cases After Azam
Clinical negligence cases can be complex enough without the added difficulty of delay in bringing proceedings resulting in a limitation defence. When it is raised by Defendants it is currently common for cases to be managed so that limitation will be tried as a prelim...
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Recent Posts
- Illegality in Clinical Negligence Claims
- Vicarious Liability and the Non-Delegable Duty in the Context of Dental Negligence Claims: Hughes v Rattan
- Secondary Victims: Still Second-Class Claimants?
