Junior doctors, even the government concedes, are the backbone of the NHS. They comprise a significant proportion of the workforce of the NHS and already provide medical cover for patients 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. They are a diverse group. At one end of the scale are the newly qualified doctors in […]

You might think that 18th Century British politics is not an obvious starting point for an analysis of the current Tory Government’s Trade Union Bill. Here’s why I think it is. David Cameron and George Osborne have taken inspiration from the Whig Supremacy the period 1715 – 1760 when the Whigs took total control of […]

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (“PHSO”) is a body set up by Parliament to investigate complaints that have not been resolved by the NHS in England and UK government departments and other UK public organisations.  It estimates that complaints about potentially avoidable deaths make up around 20% of the NHS complaints that it investigates. Earlier this month […]

In personal injury cases, a defendant is normally considered to have been negligent if they failed to do something that a reasonable person would have done, or did something that a reasonably prudent person would not have done. In medical negligence cases, the question depends on what a reasonable person with the specialist skills of […]

A motorcyclist who suffered devastating head injuries when he collided with a plough on a country road will receive a substantial sum in compensation to assist with the lifetime of care he will need. The man was overtaking a line of stationary traffic when he collided with the plough, which was protruding from the rear […]

It is not unusual in personal injury cases where a claim is made on behalf of a person who has suffered life-changing injuries for the courts to acknowledge the devotion and selflessness of family members who care for their disabled loved ones without expecting anything in return. In a recent ruling, however, the Court of […]