When healthcare mistakes cause life-changing disability leaving us dependent on medical negligence compensation for support, we put our trust in our solicitors’ capability to advise us correctly and act competently and professionally on our behalf. Where a solicitor fails to meet those expectations, whether from lack of expertise or by inadvertent mistakes, their negligence can affect the claim’s outcome, significantly reduce the injured person’s compensation, or result in the injured person losing their right to claim. These days, it is all too easy for people in all walks of life to present themselves to potential customers as ‘experts’ in areas of work that they wish to develop. All practising solicitors undergo academic, legal and professional training in the general principles and practices necessary to offer legal services, but very few have the specialist expertise, experience, and proven track record of successful, maximum-severity injury claims that are needed to ensure that you or your child receive the best possible outcome for your claim. If you think your claim has been adversely affected because your solicitor has made a mistake or advised you incorrectly, or lacks specialist experience, you should act quickly to find out whether our specialist solicitors can provide a second chance for your claim or recover your financial losses from your previous solicitor via a professional negligence claim. What is professional negligence? Solicitors have a legal duty to act for their clients with the skill and care that is expected of a reasonably competent solicitor in their field of work. If a solicitor fails below this standard and their client suffers a loss as a result of their negligence, the client may be able to recover compensation for their loss by making a professional negligence claim. Professional negligence does not include minor errors, misunderstandings, unavoidable delays or frustrating circumstances which may occur during a medical negligence claim. Likewise, there can be no claim if the solicitor’s mistake or incorrect advice does not result in recoverable loss to their client. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) sets professional standards for solicitors’ conduct and behaviour as well as ethical and competent practice. These include ensuring that the service they provide to their clients is competent and delivered in a timely manner, and that they keep their professional knowledge and skills up to date. If a solicitor becomes aware that they have made a mistake, they must be honest and open with their client. This means that they must explain, fully and promptly, what has happened and what that means for the client. If the mistake has caused loss or harm to the client, the solicitor must do what they can to put things right. If the mistake results in a conflict of interest between the solicitor and the client, such as where there are grounds for a professional negligence claim, the solicitor must tell the client to seek advice from another solicitor. Solicitors must have professional indemnity insurance to ensure their clients can be compensated for financial loss that is caused by their mistakes. What counts as professional negligence in handling a medical negligence claim? The most common types of solicitors’ negligence in handling medical negligence claims involve missing important deadlines. Failing to issue court proceedings before the limitation period expires or failing to comply with certain types of court orders can prevent the injured claimant from issuing proceedings or result in their claim being struck out. If these types of mistakes result in loss to the injured claimant, they should seek advice from another solicitor about making a professional negligence claim. Equally damaging but less obvious mishandling of a claim can arise from incompetence, where the solicitor lacks the necessary experience or expertise to handle high-value, complex, medical negligence cases, such as claims involving neurodevelopmental disability from birth or neonatal injury. This type of mistake puts the client at risk of losing their case or being grossly undercompensated for the lifelong impact of their disability. Examples of this type of mishandling of maximum severity medical negligence claims include failing to identify and use vital medical records and other evidence, incorrect instruction or choice of experts, misunderstanding or misapplication of the legal and medical concepts which are relevant to the claim, providing negligent advice about the risks and benefits of accepting or rejecting settlement offers, and gross undervaluation of a claim. Where a claim is mishandled in this way, the solicitor may not even be aware of the harm that they are causing to their client. In these cases, early action by the client or their family to seek a second opinion from a more specialist solicitor can often result in the claim being reviewed, reinvestigated or revalued with a greater likelihood of a successful outcome. What should I do if I think my solicitor is mishandling my medical negligence claim? If you are concerned about your solicitor’s handling of your own or your child’s medical negligence claim, you should seek advice or a second opinion from a specialist solicitor straight away. Don’t wait until the claim has concluded or reached a specific stage of the investigation or proceedings, or until the mistake has become irreversible. The earlier you seek the second opinion, the better the chance that your claim can be ‘rescued’, reinvestigated or revalued and succeed against the original healthcare defendant. Some of the medical negligence claims that we have successfully reinvestigated or revalued for clients include: a GBS cerebral palsy claim which the injured child’s family were told could not proceed after NHS Resolution denied liability, but our reinvestigation resulted in judgment (with compensation to follow) for our client; a cerebral palsy claim for a young woman whose family had been advised to abandon her claim, which we settled for $45 million; an Erb’s palsy birth injury case previously abandoned and incorrectly valued at £6,000, which we reinvestigated and revalued resulting in a £1.4 million settlement; an amputation case previously rejected by solicitors who failed to consider vital ambulance records, which we reinvestigated and settled for £6.4 million; a cervical cancer claim previously rejected by multiple solicitors, which we pursued and settled for £800,000; a sepsis amputation claim rejected by previous solicitors, which we pursued and settled for £750,000. If your solicitor has told you that a serious mistake has already adversely affected your claim and advised you to seek advice from another solicitor, you should act quickly to seek legal advice about whether you can recover your loss by making a professional negligence claim against your former solicitor. It will be necessary to prove that your solicitor owed you a duty of care (usually evident from their retainer or contract with you) which they breached by failing to exercise the skill and care expected of a reasonably competent solicitor. Your compensation will depend on the recoverable loss that you suffered as a result of your solicitor’s negligent handling of your claim. What are the time limits for professional negligence claims arising from mishandling of a medical negligence claim? Limitation deadlines are complicated in professional negligence claims arising from mishandled medical negligence cases. The best way to find out about the time limit that applies to your claim is to seek advice from our specialist solicitors as soon as you suspect that mistakes might have affected your claim. We recommend that if you are considering seeking a second opinion or advice about professional negligence relating to a birth injury or other life-changing injury medical negligence claim, you contact our specialist solicitors straight away. All enquiries are handled free and confidentially. If your child has cerebral palsy or neurological disability as a result of medical negligence, or you have been contacted by HSSIB/MNSI or NHS Resolution, you can talk to a solicitor, free and confidentially, for advice about how to respond or make a claim by contacting us.
