Brain Injury Cases - Case Study
The People
A was in her early 40s when she suffered a terrible headache at work. She collapsed and was taken to a local hospital before being transferred to a hospital in London. It was later discovered that she had suffered a brain haemorrhage leaving her with serious brain damage.
The Problem
In order to establish negligence we had to get reports from relevant experts including a brain surgeon and an interventional radiologist. Our case was based on the argument that the second hospital ought to have treated A more quickly which would have saved her from the most serious effects of the brain haemorrhage. The doctors treating A had about a week in which they could have acted sooner but did not. Further bleeding on the brain caused lasting damage a fact that A’s husband believed had been kept from him by the hospital as he only found this out during our investigation into the case. A detailed letter of claim was sent to the other side but the hospital failed to respond to it and court proceedings were started. Following service of court papers some admissions of negligence were made which allowed us to obtain a judgment for “damages to be assessed”. However, the hospital did not admit the extent of the damage caused by their negligence and there was a lot of dispute about the value of the case. In particular the hospital argued that because A’s life expectancy had been considerably reduced so had the value of her claim. The views of each sides’s medical experts were very different on this crucial point.
The Solution
This case required a careful review of a number of complex issues with the experts and lawyers working closely together. We did not allow the other side’s constant delaying tactics to divert us from progressing the case. After a series of offers and a long round table meeting which ended without agreement we prepared for trial. Three weeks after the meeting a further offer was made by the Defendant which was rejected. We made a counter-offer which was finally accepted by the Defendant, only one week before trial, amounting to an out of court settlement for the sum of £2,100,000. Because A was, as a result of her injuries, unable to deal with matters herself the settlement had to be approved by a judge of the Court of Protection and a High Court judge both of whom readily approved the settlement achieved for A.
Who to contact
Marek Bednarczyk
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