Medical compensation ‘outstripping public finances’ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 2nd, 2014 in compensation, damages, health, negligence, news by tracey

‘Medical defendants have warned that public finances will not be able to cope unless clinical negligence compensation is radically reformed.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 2nd October 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Essex police apologise for failing to investigate drug-related death – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 1st, 2014 in damages, drug abuse, human rights, negligence, news, police by tracey

‘A grieving family has used human rights law to force police chiefs to admit they failed to investigate the unexplained death of their son properly.’

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Daily Telegraph, 30th September 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

‘NOWHERE FAST’ – In what circumstances might a bus driver be held liable to a passenger injured as a result of a fall on a bus? – Zenith PI Blog

‘Most personal injury practitioners will have had experience of dealing with a claim made by a passenger, injured as a result of falling whilst on a bus. Many such incidents result in relatively modest injuries. However, in some cases, particular those involving more elderly Claimants, quite significant and long-lasting injuries can be involved, and with associated ongoing claims for care and assistance. Given the multitude of CCTV cameras onboard such vehicles these days, Courts are often uncommonly well served in having before them good quality evidence of the occurrence and cause of the accident itself. Typically the cause is alleged to be the driver accelerating or braking more sharply than usual. In the latter case, the blame for emergency braking is often placed upon a third party vehicle; for example as a result of pulling out into the bus’ path.’

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Zenith PI Blog, 17th September 2014

Source: www.zenithpi.wordpress.com

SAS selection deaths: inquest delayed until 2015 – BBC News

Posted September 16th, 2014 in appeals, armed forces, Crown Prosecution Service, delay, homicide, inquests, negligence, news by tracey

‘An inquest into the deaths of three soldiers who collapsed on an SAS training exercise in the Brecon Beacons has been delayed until 2015.’

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BBC News, 16th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Deceased’s Sudden Death During Stillborn Birth: Clinical Quantification? – Zenith PI Blog

Posted September 10th, 2014 in bereavement, birth, compensation, damages, medical treatment, midwives, negligence, news by sally

‘In a case reported on Lawtel yesterday, the Claimant mother and sister received £160,000 in an out of court settlement following the sudden death of the deceased (‘X’) during the delivery of her stillborn baby in December 2010. The Claimants suffered a traumatic bereavement resulting in post-traumatic stress disorder. The settlement included a dependency claim for the deceased’s son.’

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Zenith PI Blog, 9th September 2014

Source: www.zenithpi.wordpress.com

The perils of skiing, reduced bonuses and missed deadlines – Commercial Disputes Blog

Posted August 28th, 2014 in appeals, law firms, negligence, news, time limits by sally

‘The High Court has recently revisited how loss of chance damages will be quantified in professional negligence claims.’

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Commercial Disputes Blog, 26th August 2014

Source: www.rpc.co.uk

Supreme Court refuses to hear litigant-in-person negligence appeal – Litigation Futures

Posted August 28th, 2014 in appeals, autism, litigants in person, negligence, news, solicitors, Supreme Court by sally

‘The Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal from a litigant in person who sued her solicitors for negligence and whose claim included the grounds that she suffered from Asperger’s Syndrome.’

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Litigation Futures, 28th August 2014

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Claimant lawyers hit back over “cynical” part 36 offers – Litigation Futures

‘The Forum of Complex Injury Lawyers (FOCIS) has hit back after a report for the Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC) recommended that part 36 should be reformed, partly to discourage claimant lawyers from making “cynical” offers.’

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Litigation Futures, 20th August 2014

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Young v Anglo American South Africa Ltd and others – WLR Daily

Young v Anglo American South Africa Ltd and others (No 2) [2014] EWCA Civ 1130; [2014] WLR (D) 370

‘Where a company had its statutory seat and principal place of business outside England, to determine whether a claim against it could be brought in England for the purposes of article 60(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001, the claimant had to show a good arguable case that England was the jurisdiction where the company had its “central administration”, which was the place where, through its relevant organs according to its own constitutional provisions, it took the decisions essential for that its operations.’

WLR Daily, 31st July 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Bite Size RTA Case Law Update – Zenith Chambers

Posted August 7th, 2014 in accidents, duty of care, negligence, news, road safety, road traffic offences by sally

‘Road traffic accidents are notoriously fact specific, but looking at those cases which go to trial can be helpful in terms of understanding what judges think is important. Here I look at three very different recent cases. In Jade Christian v. South East London & Kent Bus Co.the court reiterated that appellate courts have to exercise the greatest restraint before overturning findings of fact made at first instance. In Gray v. Botwright the Court of Appeal went against the general principle that drivers are entitled to assume that no traffic will be crossing against a red light. In Gupta v. Armstrong & Anor a coach driver who was carefully executing a manoeuvre and failed to see a pedestrian who was trying to flag him down to board was not found to have been negligent to any degree.’

Full story (PDF)

Zenith Chambers, 22nd July 2014

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

Fair or foul: sport and the law – Henderson Chambers

‘The question is: how does one earn a living in sport? By skill? Hand-eye coordination? Fancy footwork? Fast reactions? By luck? By cheating – and getting away with it? Or none of these. As far as we are concerned, the living is earned in the law. The law by, with, to and from all aspects of sport because a legal principle from every page of every textbook will apply somewhere in the entire spectrum of sports activities on and off the field. Think of the law that applies to staff, betting,merchandising of team brands, the corrections of misdemeanours and their effects, ownership of buildings, copyright issues. If I just do a list, it will go on forever. I do not have “a little list.” Mine is endless and what I propose to do is to follow, if not the rules, then the pattern of sport by touching on a topic haphazardly then running back, in an intellectual sort of way, to the other side of the court before starting again on a different tack. There are so many sporting metaphors to mix.’

Full story (PDF)

Henderson Chambers, 8th July 2014

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Nominal damages for ‘negligent’ yacht advice – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted August 6th, 2014 in contracts, damages, guarantees, law firms, negligence, news, sale of goods by sally

‘A leading firm has avoided paying out significant damages despite admitting negligence when it gave advice on the purchase of a £3.6m yacht.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 5th August 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

David T. Morrison & Co Limited t/a Gael Home Interiors (Respondent) v ICL Plastics Limited and others (Appellants) (Scotland) – Supreme Court

David T. Morrison & Co Limited t/a Gael Home Interiors (Respondent) v ICL Plastics Limited and others (Appellants) (Scotland) [2014] UKSC 48 (YouTube)

Supreme Court, 30th July 2014

Source: www.youtube.com/user/UKSupremeCourt

Joanna Michael family in Supreme Court in negligence fight – BBC News

‘The family of a mother-of-two stabbed to death will take its negligence claim against two police forces to the Supreme Court.’

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BBC News, 28th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Ballinger and another v Mercer Ltd and another – WLR Daily

Ballinger and another v Mercer Ltd and another; [2014] EWCA Civ 996; [2014] WLR (D) 335

‘Where a claimant applied to introduce a new claim by amendment under CPR r 17.4, and the defendant could show a prima facie defence of limitation, the burden was on the claimant to show that the defence was not reasonably arguable. Amendments seeking to add or substitute a new cause of action would only be permitted if they arose out of the same or substantially the same facts as were already in issue on the existing claims.’

WLR Daily, 17th July 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Greenwich Millennium Village Ltd v Essex Services Group plc and others – WLR Daily

Greenwich Millennium Village Ltd v Essex Services Group plc and others: [2014] EWCA Civ 960; [2014] WLR (D) 309

‘A contractor (the respondent) to which building work had been subcontracted which it had in turn subcontracted to another contractor (the appellant) which undertook to indemnify the respondent against liability for the appellant’s negligence was not prevented by its own negligence from enforcing the indemnity clause.’

WLR Daily, 11th July 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Hull mum Kerry Abel jailed over toddler son’s drowning – BBC News

‘The mother of a toddler, who drowned in a bath in Hull, has been sentenced to three years in prison for his manslaughter.’

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BBC News, 4th July 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

MMR vaccine: lawyers sued for pursuing claim based on link to autism – The Guardian

‘A man is suing his former legal team for pursuing “hopeless claims” based on flawed research into the MMR vaccine, it has emerged.’

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The Guardian, 26th June 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Kyle Keen: Toddler death ‘could have been avoided’ – BBC News

Posted June 19th, 2014 in child abuse, children, hospitals, negligence, news, reports by sally

‘The death of a toddler could have been avoided if a West Midlands hospital had referred him to social services at an earlier date, a report has found.’

 Full story

BBC News, 19th June 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Claims against banks for negligent credit references? The possible impact of the Durkin decision – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted June 6th, 2014 in banking, consumer credit, economic loss, negligence, news by sally

‘Professionals in all walks of life are frequently asked to give references in respect of people or organisations. A negligently given reference may cause the recipient who relies on it or the person the subject of it to suffer pure economic loss in respect of which they will want to recover damages. In Durkin v DSG Retail Limited [2014] 1 W.L.R. 1148, the Supreme Court has, in a couple of short paragraphs, given a timely reminder of the pitfalls than may await anyone, in particular banks and other lenders, who gives a negligent reference.’

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 21st May 2014

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk