Phoenix Legal Services - Costs reform Clin Neg 290615

Phoenix Legal Services

Phoenix Legal Services | Clinical Negligence practitioner updater 29 June 2015

Health Minister proposed reform to legal costs for clinical negligence in danger of pushing experienced fee earners out of complex cases.

Over the weekend, The Guardian Society magazine reported on potential reform to claimant lawyers’ clinical negligence fees for cases in England and Wales – an article that has ignited opinion from both sides of the fence.

The article ‘Clampdown on lawyers overcharging NHS in clinical negligence cases,1’ claims that ‘as part of a Department of Health plan to save the NHS up to £80m a year, legal costs for claims up to £100,000 would be fixed. The lawyer’s fee would reflect a percentage of the compensation received by the patient.

‘The health minister, Ben Gummer, is pushing through the changes in a bid to reduce the £259m bill for legal fees paid out over clinical negligence claims in 2013/14.’

The article was lambasted on Twitter by Law Society Gazette journalist, John Hyde 2, for deriding the role of claimant clinical negligence lawyers (a spokesman for the NHSLA described lawyers as having ‘pocketed’ fees) but this is, suggests Stephen Averill, Managing Director of Phoenix Legal Services, a double-­‐edged issue.

Stephen, (pictured), said: “Yes, there are firms out there who abuse the system – as there were which caused Jackson to push through his reforms – but there are also many firms who do a fantastic job at a very economical rate.

1 bit.ly/1HpZ6mV

2 twitter.com/johnhyde1982

Phoenix Legal Services

“On the flip side there are health trusts who will deny liability and force the Claimant to undertake so much more work before they throw in the towel. By then a considerable amount of cost will have been incurred which could make the case appear disproportionate.

“My concern about introducing fixed costs is that it is possible that the Defendants will dig in their heels more because there is in effect less to lose. The Defendant will know the most that they will have to pay and will probably be happy to push the Claimant into doing far more work than they would otherwise have needed to do.

“It is a very delicate balance as firms need to undertake the work at a profitable rate but the Defendants want to pay as little as possible.

“The problems that are being experienced with the provisional assessment regime over what is now seen to be too low a maximum recoverable sum will be where the clinical negligence work will end up. There will not be enough margin and the experienced practitioners will be replaced by paralegals who do not have the experience to achieve the results.”

To see how the potential changes could affect costs budgeting for your clinical / medical negligence caseload and to secure specialist support and our expert advice in advance, whether you have a claimant or defendant practice, please contact Stephen Averill directly on:

e: stephen.averill@phoenixlegalservices.co.uk

t: 029 2066 8664 ext. 209 Or visit www.phoenixlegalservices.co.uk