Medical Law FAQs

What can I claim for?

You can claim for compensation in respect of your pain, suffering and loss of quality of life. This will depend on the type of injury you have suffered as a result of clinical negligence. You may also claim for any financial losses and expenses you have suffered because of your injury. This may include loss of earnings, private medical expenses, travelling expenses, value of care provided by family members and friends and costs of any aids and equipment.

If you have suffered long term injuries then you may be entitled to compensation for future losses and expenses. This includes loss of earnings, costs of care and accommodation, loss of pension rights, therapeutic expenses, extra transport costs.

How much will it cost?

We offer a first free interview where we discuss with you all the options and whether your claim should be investigated further. If you decide to go ahead with your clinical negligence claim then we will advise in detail all the possible funding options open to you.  These may include Legal Aid, conditional fees (“no win, no fee”), legal expenses insurance or you paying privately.

It is worth remembering that if you are successful in your clinical negligence claim and receive damages, the majority of your legal costs should be recoverable from the opponent.

How long will it take?

It is difficult to answer this question on a website.

How long it will take to conclude your case will depend on the circumstances and what you want to achieve. Every clinical negligence case is different. We will discuss this with you in detail when we meet and when we have had an opportunity of reviewing the issues with you.

Is there a time limit for claiming?

The usual rule is three years from either the date of the incident or the date you were first aware that the symptoms you are suffering were as a result of negligent treatment. This can be complex and it is important to seek legal advice as soon as possible to find out when time started to run. If you are outside the three year time limit then you may be prevented from bringing a claim by the Court. There are some exceptions to the three year rule, for example, if you were under 18 years of age at the time of the incident, then the three year time period will not start to run until your 18th birthday. It is important to seek legal advice immediately.

Visit the medical law fact sheets page for more information on some of these topics.