PART 36, FATAL ACCIDENT CLAIMS AND PRE-ACTION SETTLEMENT: A POINT FOR BOTH CLAIMANTS AND DEFENDANTS TO WATCH
The judgment of Mr Justice Turner in Kore v Brocklebank [2019] EWHC 3491 (QB) raises some interesting issues in relation to Part 36 and fatal accident claims. It means that both claimants and defendants will have to take considerable care…
PROVING THINGS 169: WHEN THE DEFENDANT CALLS NO (LAY) EVIDENCE AND TRIES TO PROVE ITS CASE THROUGH THE CLAIMANT’S WITNESSES
There are a number of interesting aspects of the judgment of HHJ Coe in Esegbona v King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (false imprisonment in hospital) [2019] EWHC 77 (QB). One of which is the defendant’s failure to call any…
WHEN “ROBUST” CASE MANAGEMENT TURNS INTO APPARENT BIAS: HIGH COURT OVERTURNS DIRECTIONS: THE TALE OF THE ORGAN GRINDER
In Dorman & Ors v Clinton Devon Farms Partnership [2019] EWHC 2988 (QB) Mr Justice Pushpinder Saini allowed an appeal against directions made by a Circuit Judge. He also upheld an appeal against that judges refusal to recuse himself on…
DEALING WITH THE BEREAVED CLIENT: USEFUL LINKS AND GUIDANCE (2019)
This is the time of year when Hilary Wetherell and I travel round and give the APIL course on “Fatal Accidents, Practice, Procedure and Compassion”. The course deals a lot with the law and procedural aspects of fatal accidents. However…
FATAL ACCIDENTS: LAW, PRACTICE, PROCEDURE & COMPASSION: COURSES IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER 2019
Alongside solicitor and partner in Irwin Mitchell Hilary Wetherell I am speaking at the APIL day-long courses on fatal accidents in November and December this year, in London, Manchester and Bristol. Our emphasis is on practical knowledge and application of…
RECOVERING THE COST OF ATTENDING THE INQUEST: MUST BE BOTH RELEVANT AND PROPORTIONATE (BUT PROPORTIONALITY IS NOT JUST ABOUT MONEY)
The judgment today in Fullick & Ors v The Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis [2019] EWHC 1941 (QB) deals with the, often challenging, question of whether the costs of attending an inquest is recoverable in cases where the claimant…
FATAL ACCIDENTS 4th EDITION: WANT A FREE COPY? WHAT DOES YOUR CLIENT NEED YOU KNOW ABOUT BEREAVEMENT?
The 4th edition of Fatal Accidents was published last week. The publishers, Lexis Nexis, have several copies they can give away. I am looking for contributions (here or on Twitter) as to the most useful things that lawyers can know,…
LATEST EDITION OF THE GUIDE TO FATAL ACCIDENTS: AVAILABLE NOW
There is, I suppose, no point in having a blog if you can’t tell people about your own books. The 4th edition of the Guide to Fatal Accidents is out and in (at least one) shop window. As well as…
CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 50: THE POSTS SO FAR
The “back to basics” series has been going since April 2018. It has covered a surprising amount of topics. From how to draft an application to “litigation wishful thinking”. Some people have expressed surprise and how “basic” some points are…
PROVING THINGS 151: DEPENDENCY IN A FATAL ACCIDENT ACT CLAIM: ADULT CHILD DEPENDANTS RECEIVE DAMAGES FOR FUTURE CONTRIBUTIONS TO WEDDINGS AND TOWARDS THEIR FIRST HOME
In AB v KL [2019] EWHC 611 (QB) David Edwards QC (sitting as a judge of the High Court) considered the nature of the evidence needed to establish damages under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976. It is also important both…
FATAL ACCIDENTS: PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO BEREAVEMENT PAYMENTS : ADVANCE NOTICE FOR LECTURES LATER IN THE YEAR (AND A NEW EDITION OF A BOOK…)
The government is, at long last, putting forward a draft remedial order to amend Section 1A of the Fatal Accidents Act 1976. This would allow cohabitees, who have been living together for more than two years, to recover the statutory…
CLAIMANTS IN A FATAL ACCIDENT CLAIM HAVE NOT “WON” ANYTHING: SETTLEMENT OF ACTION APPROVED: DETAILS KEPT CONFIDENTIAL
In Correa & Ors v BP Plc & Ors [2019] EWHC 232 (QB) Mrs Justice Yip approved damages in a fatal accident case. The judgment provides a great deal of anonymity but gives a real indication of the difficulties involved. “The…
THE ORDER THE COURTS CAN MAKE WHEN A DEFENDANT HAS DIED AND THERE ARE NO EXECUTORS OR ADMINISTRATORS
Another aspect of the judgment Currie v Thornley & Anor [2019] EWHC. 172 (Ch) relates to the order the courts can make when a defendant in a civil action has died. THE CASE One of two defendants in a civil action had…
FRESH PROCEEDINGS CAN BE ISSUED IF FIRST PROCEEDINGS ON BEHALF OF THE DECEASED WERE A NULLITY: DENTON CONSIDERED
In the judgment today in Hutson & Anor, The Personal Representatives of v Tata Steel UK Ltd [2019] EWHC 143 (QB) Mr Justice Turner considered several points relating to the ability of those acting on behalf of an estate to…
CIVIL PROCEDURE: BACK TO BASICS 25: FATAL ACCIDENT ACT LIMITATION PERIODS AND CHILDREN
The law of limitation for Fatal Accidents Act claims for children is often misunderstood. Here we look at the limitation period in relation to fatal accident claims and children. There are two issues: the limitation period when any of…
FATAL ACCIDENTS: AVOIDING THE PITFALLS: WEBINAR 29th MARCH 2019
I am presenting a webinar on avoiding the pitfalls in fatal accident claims on the 29th March 2019, 1 – 2 pm. The idea came about from of a number of search terms that led to this blog, including “fatal…
CIVIL PROCEDURE BACK TO BASICS 23: YOU CAN’T SUE THE DEAD: BUT YOU CAN SUE THEIR ESTATE: WHAT TO DO IF THERE IS NO ESTATE
This post is due to a search term that arrived on this blog today “how to join a deceased person to litigation”. The simple answer is that you can’t. An action has to be against the deceased’s estate. Attempting to…
LINKS TO GUIDANCE ON DRAFTING WITNESS STATEMENT: INTERACTIVE BLOGGING
Yesterday I was speaking on the APIL Fatal Accidents course. One of the points I was making was the importance of reading the rules and and guidance in relation to the drafting of witness statements. The delegates asked for links…
YOU CANNOT ARGUE A “NEW” CASE AT THE APPEAL STAGE: “RACING” DRIVERS NOT INVOLVED IN A CRIMINAL JOINT ENTERPRISE: FATAL ACCIDENT ACT DAMAGES AWARDED
In Wallett & Ors v Vickers [2018] EWHC 3088 (QB) Mr Justice Males overturned a decision in favour of the defendant and awarded damages to the estate of a deceased driver. The important procedural issue is that the defendant were not…
HELPING THE BEREAVED CLIENT II: WHERE TO LOOK FOR HELP
Another matter being dealt with at the forthcoming courses on fatal accidents is where you can send a client for help. Again this is an issue that covers a wide range of lawyers. As a companion to the first piece…
