Ambulance-chasing lawyers were paid half a billion pounds from NHS budgets last year as clinical negligence claims spiralled out of control, a damning report by MPs reveals. Legal teams typically pocketed almost four-times more in fees than harmed patients received in compensation, the Commons Public Accounts Committee said. Costs in clinical negligence claims have risen sharply in recent years, with claimant legal fees more than tripling in real terms from £148 million in 2

A mum is taking legal action against the NHS after spending six years undergoing gruelling chemotherapy she didn’t need. Samantha Smith, 45, was diagnosed with a brain tumour and told she needed surgery, radiotherapy and long-term chemo under the care of University Hospital Coventry. Despite guidelines saying patients should receive just six months of the drug, Samantha was kept on it for six-and-a-half years. On the advice of her consultant oncologist, Professor Ian Brown, s

The number of RTA personal injury claims has fallen dramatically in the past year to continue the trend of a long-term decline. Figures obtained by the claimant-facing Association of Consumer Support Organisations (ACSO) following a freedom of information request show that motor injury claims in the fourth quarter of 2025 fell by 24% to 63,833. This was comfortably the lowest quarterly figures on record. On an annual basis, motor claims reduced by 14% to 282,428 while the tot

Bosses at a scandal-hit NHS “super hospital” have admitted that its water system probably caused infections in child cancer patients. Two children died and at least 84 fell ill with infections while being treated at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus in Glasgow. For several years, officials at QEUH have denied any link between the hospital’s water supply and infections in patients . But NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, the health board overseeing the hospital, has

NHS doctors operated on the wrong body part of nearly 100 patients during a six-month period last year, it has been revealed. They were among 237 catastrophic mistakes – known as ‘never events’ – admitted by hospitals from April to September. One man who walked in for a chat with his consultant was given an internal bladder examination called a cystoscopy – where a camera is inserted into the tube which carries urine out of the body. It was only when a man of the same name a

The continued push for fixed costs has resulted in more deductions from clients’ damages and raises questions about whether justice is being achieved, according to the Association of Costs Lawyers (ACL). Further, the process introduced as part of the extension of fixed recoverable costs (FRC) in October 2023 to resolve disputes about the level of those costs has proven “entirely inadequate”. Responding to the Civil Procedure Rule Committee’s FRC interim implementation stockta

The team at Stewart House have been busy writing an article regarding the cases received in relation to claims involving A&E departments. Please take a look at it here:

Reforms to personal injury whiplash claims introduced under the previous government have resulted in significant consequences for access to justice and claimant compensation, the Law Society said today. Responding to the Ministry of Justice’s call for evidence as part of its post-implementation review of the changes, the Society said it is concerned that the reforms: Have not enabled claimants to pursue claims independently. An unexpectedly high number (89%) of claimants have

A former Premier League footballer has successfully challenged a leading surgeon in the High Court, claiming an "unnecessary procedure" prematurely ended his career. Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, 39, sustained a broken left leg in April 2013. The Wolverhampton Wanderers striker was injured during a match against Birmingham City. During the subsequent operation to repair the injury, Professor James Calder, the surgeon, reportedly cleaned out the joint and removed cartilage. Mr Ebanks-B

A government taskforce scrutinising motor premiums has largely opted to leave the market alone – despite lobbying from the insurance industry. The taskforce, made up of the transport, business, justice and treasury departments, was formed just over a year ago to consider how to stabilise and reduce insurance premiums. A supporting cast of stakeholders included consumer groups and motor and insurance representative bodies, but notably no claimant lawyers. The taskforce publish

A recent High Court decision highlights the critical importance of expert witnesses in clinical negligence cases having a sound understanding of the “Bolam” test. While the test is not strictly determinative, a lack of familiarity can significantly undermine the credibility of their evidence. 1. What is this new pilot scheme? In Tarrant v Monkhouse [2025] EWHC 2576 (KB) the claimant brought a negligence claim following complications from bariatric surgery. Shortly before tri

A musician tragically died from a traumatic brain injury after a fall in hospital following a 30-hour A&E wait, an inquest has heard. An inquest in Truro heard yesterday that Luke Raggatt's girlfriend pleaded with medical staff at the NHS Royal Cornwall Hospital in Treliske for a brain scan following the fall in October last year, but was told it wasn't necessary. Speaking before the inquest, an emergency department consultant described not prescribing medication to preven

A solicitor was “quite wrong” to advise his personal injury client to make a covert recording of testing undertaken by their opponent’s medical expert, the High Court has ruled. This was particularly the case as the parties had agreed not to record each side’s testing, which the solicitor said he had forgotten. His Honour Judge Shanks, sitting as a High Court judge, was ruling on an application in a £3.25m claim by a passenger in a road traffic accident. There was no issue t

MPs have pressed NHS England and NHS Resolution on what concrete steps they are taking to tackle the rising cost of clinical negligence, warning that longstanding system failures — including poor complaints handling, maternity safety issues, and slow case progression — are driving avoidable spending. Members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said the focus must shift from describing the scale of the problem to delivering action. Future liabilities for clinical negligenc

The potential for clinical negligence claimants to effectively ‘win twice’ through care awards is coming under scrutiny from parliament as a way to slash costs. The National Audit Office last month raised concerns that claimants who receive statutory funding for private health treatment as part of their compensation may access free NHS services and pocket the money. It was confirmed by health officials at the Public Accounts Committee evidence session on Thursday that this is

Hospital leaders missed 32 opportunities to act over safety concerns about a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon accused of botching children’s operations, an independent review has found. The investigation said that failures by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust allowed Kuldeep Stohr to continue operating at Addenbrooke’s Hospital for years, putting patients at prolonged risk. Experts highlight how “actions could have been taken to reduce harm to patients”. Comp

Erica Flatley, 53, from Balby, underwent surgery to remove the lower lobe of her right lung in September 2020 following a diagnosis of suspected lung cancer. It was only after the procedure that doctors confirmed the mass was caused by pneumonia, not cancer, meaning the surgery had been unnecessary. She said: “At my two-week review, the surgeon told me I was in the one percent of people who didn’t have cancer, and that it was likely to have been an infection. “I was just as s

A highly-respected pathologist died from an overdose after he was given the wrong drug by staff at the NHS trust where he worked. Prof Ray McMahon, 68, suffered a cardiac arrest after he was given medication which was three times too strong, his inquest heard. The father-of-three, who was president of the International Academy of Pathology, died at Wythenshawe Hospital on February 18, four days after he had been admitted with a fever. He had been poorly for many years with i

APIL has laid bare the ‘irrefutable prejudice’ against personal injury claimants and ensuing erosion of their right to redress, in evidence to the House of Commons Justice Select Committee’s access to justice inquiry. “In the last 15 years, a series of policy decisions has profoundly undermined access to justice for injured victims of negligence, the rule of law, and the well-established principle of 100 per cent compensation,” said APIL (Association of Personal Injury Lawyer

For 16 years, Charles Cullen worked as a nurse across multiple hospitals , secretly killing patients by administering fatal overdoses of medication into their IVs. It's estimated that Cullen may have murdered up to 400 people, making him one of the most prolific serial killers in modern history. Cullen had a difficult childhood. His father died when he was an infant, his mother was killed in a car accident while he was in high school, and two of his siblings also passed away