John Boyle
John joined Barcan and Kirby in September 2026 and has over two decades of experience in clinical negligence, inquests and healthcare law.
He has significant experience in all aspects of complex and high-value clinical negligence matters.
His expertise includes:
- Cerebral palsy
- Adult brain injuries
- Spinal injuries
- Fatal injury cases
- Misdiagnosis claims including: meningitis, fertility claims, cases involving alleged abuse by healthcare professionals, product liability and group actions, cancer cases, psychiatric negligence/psychiatric injury and suicide claims
- Amputation claims
John also has experience in all aspects of healthcare law, including:
- Health-related inquests
- Public law/judicial review
- Mental health
- Mental capacity
- Serious medical treatment disputes
- Safeguarding, data privacy and regulatory law
John has successfully taken a number of cases to trial and has resolved many cases through mediation and at joint settlement meetings. He has been involved in several cases in the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.
John has expertise in health-related cases brought under the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA), having acted in the trial and the subsequent appeal in the seminal Supreme Court case of Rabone v. Pennine Care NHS Trust [2012] UKSC2. In Rabone, it was held that NHS Trusts may owe a protective duty under Article 2 (the right to life) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to informal mental health patients (ie, patients not detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983) where they pose a real and immediate risk of suicide. John has subsequently acted in numerous HRA damages cases and inquests where Rabone has been relevant.
Qualifications
- Law (LL.B.), Master of Medical Law (LL.M.) from Cardiff University