Not every important clinical negligence claim
is worth millions.

Value is not the same as importance

Some clinical negligence claims are worth many millions of pounds because the injured person will require professional care, specialist accommodation, therapies, equipment and support throughout life.

Other acts of negligence may cause injury which is serious to the patient but less financially catastrophic. The resulting claim may be of much more modest value.

To the person who has suffered that injury, however, the consequences can still be profound. A claim does not become unimportant simply because it is not one of the highest-value clinical negligence cases.

What a more modest claim may still involve

An avoidable medical injury may result in months or years of pain, additional treatment, a further operation, time away from work, dependency on a husband, wife or family member, psychological consequences or a period during which the person cannot live their ordinary life.

For some clients, answers and accountability are also important. They may want to understand what happened, whether the outcome could have been avoided and whether the provider has acknowledged what went wrong.

• additional pain, treatment or recovery time
• avoidable surgery or delayed treatment
• lost earnings or disrupted work
• care and assistance from family members
• loss of independence or ordinary activities
• answers, accountability and acknowledgement

Proportionality still matters

Access to justice does not mean every concern should become a claim. Clinical negligence work must be assessed carefully. The likely merits, evidence, causation issues, limitation, value, funding and proportionality all matter.

Scott and his team consider whether the apparent injury and available evidence justify proper investigation. Some matters are suitable for formal clinical negligence work. Some are better addressed through a complaint, inquest, regulatory process or another route.

Early candour is important. It is better to give a realistic view at the outset than to encourage a client into investigation which is unlikely to help.

Why specialist advice can still be justified

Clinical negligence claims often turn on difficult questions of medicine, causation and evidence. Even where the potential value is not enormous, the issues may still require careful analysis.

A medication error, negligent fertility treatment, pressure ulcer, orthopaedic injury, delayed diagnosis, surgical complication or nursing care failure can cause a meaningful injury even if the claim is not worth millions of pounds.

Where it is reasonable and proportionate to do so, Scott considers cases across a range of claim values. The focus is on whether the matter has sufficient merit, seriousness and evidential foundation to justify further work.

The same fundamental questions apply

Whether a case is catastrophic or financially more modest, the starting questions are broadly the same.

• What happened?
• Should it have happened?
• Did the care fall below a reasonable standard?
• Did that negligence cause avoidable harm?
• What are the consequences of that harm?
• What can reasonably be done to compensate the injured person and address future needs?

A selective but not purely high-value practice

Scott's experience includes catastrophic clinical negligence claims involving serious injury, lifelong disability and substantial care needs. Those cases require significant resources and detailed expert evidence.

His work is not confined to cases of the highest financial value. Where it is appropriate, reasonable and proportionate, Scott also considers claims involving more modest damages but significant avoidable injury.

That may include medication errors, fertility treatment negligence, orthopaedic injuries, pressure damage, delayed diagnosis, nursing care failures and other forms of medical negligence where the effect on the individual remains serious.

The aim is not to pursue every complaint. The aim is to identify matters where specialist clinical negligence advice can make a meaningful difference.