NHS CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE

Legal Aid
Public funding is available for NHS clinical negligence claims. Children will usually qualify for legal aid with no financial contribution even though the child's parents may have substantial income and assets. Applicants must be able to comply with strict financial parameters based on income and assets set out by the Legal Services Commission and must also be able to satisfy the following criteria

• Cost Benefit
  The cost of the legal action must bear a sensible relationship to the anticipated benefit gained from winning the case.
• Success Prospects
  There must usually be a better than 50% chance of winning an NHS clinical negligence case however there are certain exceptions to this overall policy particularly in cases that are of critical importance to the applicant.
• Case Importance
  The Legal Services Commission must judge the importance of the claim to a reasonable person in the circumstances involved including the amount of compensation and the consequences of failing to take action

No Win No Fee.
For those who do not qualify for public funding a solicitor may proceed with a claim using the no win no fee conditional fee scheme. A solicitor acting under this arrangement is paid his legal fee only if he wins the case. Under these arrangements there may be a financial contribution necessary from the claimant to pay for expenses as the claim proceeds.

Private Funding.
Following the advent of the “no win no fee” scheme; cases that are privately funded are now much less common. however if a solicitor is not prepared to take the risk of pursuing action using a conditional fees arrangement the claimant still has the option of fully financing the claim themselves. Insurance cover can be taken out for the risk of losing the claim and being ordered to pay the other side’s legal costs.

Legal Expenses Insurance
Some household insurance policies have legal expenses cover to pay for legal action for medical negligence claims.

We are national network of highly qualified medical negligence solicitors which operates in the UK. All of our solicitors are highly experienced specialists in NHS clinical negligence. They are well equipped to succeed in any valid case relating to a clinical error. Our solicitors are authorised by the Law Society to make an application for Public Funding of claims. Only one per cent of UK solicitors are authorised in this way. You can discuss your potential claim with an experienced lawyer from our network. For free qualified advice without any further obligation, complete the contact form and you will be given a call as soon as possible by one of the team.