Personal Injury/Clinical Negligence

The boss of a claims management company that encouraged people to bring bogus holiday sickness cases has been disqualified as a director for five years.

The Court of Appeal has handed a boost to claimant personal injury solicitors by applying the more generous fixed costs regime for cases where the claimant in a low-value matter dies.

The value of the medico-legal market fell by 18% to £650m last year because of Covid reducing the number of new personal injury cases and slowing down those already in progress.

The former chief executive of NAHL Group has joined innovative claims management company Call Brian as its chairman. It says it allows people to submit a claim in just seven minutes.

Low numbers of litigants in person, two law firms dominating claims, and solicitors using the wrong portal have been features of the early days of the whiplash reforms.

Almost all of the people who have started claims in the new Official Injury Claim portal so far are represented, a leading insurer has revealed. A number of bugs have also already emerged.

Claimant and insurer representatives have begun work on developing test cases to take to the Court of Appeal for claims that involve both whiplash and non-whiplash injuries.

The charity dedicated to supporting litigants in person has expressed serious concerns about the new Official Injury Claim portal and called for more funding for legal support organisations.

Slater & Gordon has launched ‘miplatform’, what it says is a ‘first of its kind’ digital legal service that enables clients to progress their matters with little or no direct contact with a lawyer.

The Civil Liability Act reforms went live yesterday with the government promising an end to “greedy opportunism” while claimant representatives deemed it a “sad day for justice”.