Medical Negligence Solicitors
Medical negligence – also called clinical negligence – claims are brought when a patient has suffered injury as a result of substandard medical treatment.
Medical negligence claims can arise out of all kinds of medical treatment, common examples include a doctor failing to diagnose your condition or mistakes made in surgery or during a procedure.
Specialist advice to secure your future
If you’ve suffered serious injury as a result of medical negligence, you need a specialist solicitor with expertise in your type of claim. Our medical negligence lawyers provide legal advice to clinical negligence clients throughout England and Wales.
Why choose us?
Our expertise speaks for itself. We are ranked in Chambers and Partners UK 2025 for our medical negligence practice. Five members of the team; Claire Hurrell, Fiona Dabell, Helen Franklin, Jay Nathwani and Richard Harries are also singled out for their expertise and individually ranked.
Our Clinical Negligence team is also one of only five medical negligence departments in the South West region to receive a top tier ranking (tier 1) from Legal 500 2025. Richard Harries is recognised as a ‘Leading Partner’, whilst Helen Franklin and Jay Nathwani are listed as ‘Next Generation Partners’. Fiona Dabell is ranked as a ‘Leading Associate’.
Our experienced medical negligence claims team is headed up by panel members of Action Against Medical Accidents, the charity for patient safety and justice, and the Law Society’s Clinical Negligence Accreditation Scheme. The team also won Team of the Year at the Bristol Law Society Awards 2019.
External experts
Our medical negligence lawyers work with various external experts to ensure your case is managed to the highest standard. We work with barristers, medical experts, cost lawyers and charities, amongst others.
Home visits
We understand that it can be difficult for those who have suffered as a result of medical negligence to get to appointments at our offices.
If you would prefer for us to visit you at home, we are happy to accommodate your needs. Simply let your solicitor know when arranging an appointment.
Get in touch with our medical negligence team in Bristol and South Gloucestershire
Our medical negligence lawyers work with clients across the UK from our offices in Bedminster, Bishopston, Bristol city centre, Kingswood and Thornbury.
To speak to our specialist Clinical Negligence team, contact us on 0117 325 2929 or complete our online enquiry form.
Our medical negligence claims service
We can provide advice and support with a wide range of medical negligence issues including:
- Amputation
- Cancer misdiagnosis and delays in treatment
- Cerebral palsy
- Compartment syndrome
- Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism
- Erb’s palsy
- Fatalities and Inquests
- Head and brain injuries
- Maternal birth injury claims
- Meningitis misdiagnosis and Meningococcal Septicaemia
- Medical misdiagnosis
- Delayed diagnosis
- Nerve damage
- Orthopaedic and fractures
- Pressure sores
- Sepsis
- Spinal injuries and Cauda Equina Syndrome
No win, no fee medical negligence claims
Our medical negligence solicitors represent the majority of our clients on a no win, no fee basis. Also known as a ‘conditional fee agreement’, this provides you with some protection against financial risk when starting a claim.
If your claim is successful, the majority of your legal fees will usually be recovered from the Defendant. Any non-recoverable costs, such as any success fee and your insurance premium, can be paid from your compensation. Your lawyer will discuss this with you at the very outset of your claim.
There are several other options for funding a medical negligence claim. These include legal expenses insurance, trade union funding, legal aid (for some cases involving children) and private funding. The important thing is that, no matter your financial circumstances, we will help you find the right funding option so you can pursue your claim.
Read more about ways to fund a medical negligence claim.
Time limits for medical negligence claims
When considering making a claim for medical negligence, it’s vital to realise that there are strict time limits. If you miss the window to start a claim, you are very unlikely to be able to pursue compensation, no matter how justified your claim.
In general, you will have three years from the time when the medical negligence occurs to start a claim. However, if you only become aware later that negligence may have occurred or that you were injured as a result, the three year time limit may be counted from the time you became aware of the issue (your ‘date of knowledge’), rather than when it occurred.
It is also important to bear in mind that, in order to get to the stage where a claim can be brought, you will need to instruct your solicitor to carry out some preliminary investigations on your behalf. This usually involves requesting your medical records and instructing independent medical experts. This can take time and so it’s advisable to speak to a solicitor sooner rather than later if you think you have a claim.
Claims for children and those without mental capacity
If the claim relates to a child injured as a result of medical negligence, you will have until their 18th birthday to bring a claim on their behalf. The child will then have a further three years to bring a claim on their own behalf if you have not already done so, giving them until their 21st birthday to start a claim.
Where the person injured as a result of medical negligence does not have the mental capacity to bring a claim themselves, e.g. because they have been left in a coma, there is no time limit for you to bring a claim on their behalf. This will only change if they later regain capacity, e.g. they awake from a coma. In this case, they will then have three years from the time when they regain mental capacity to bring a claim.
How medical negligence claims work
One thing many people find reassuring is that the majority of medical negligence claims can be resolved without the need for you to go to court. This is because claims can be resolved via a pre-trial settlement and can also be settled at any time up to a trial. This means there are potential opportunities to secure compensation faster, at a lower cost and with significantly less stress.
Our clinical negligence solicitors can guide you through every step of the claims process. We ensure that wherever there is an opportunity to successfully conclude your claim at an early stage without compromising your interests, we will do so. However, if your claim does go to court, we have the expertise and experience to ensure you have the very best possible representation to help you achieve a fair outcome.
The following is a brief overview of what to expect during the clinical negligence claims process:
Your initial contact with our team
When you first speak to our medical negligence lawyers, we will talk through the negligence you believe occurred and the impact on your/your loved one’s health. We will then give an honest evaluation of whether we think your claim merits further investigation, as well as discussing the various options for funding your claim.
Building your medical negligence case
This typically involves various steps, such as obtaining medical records from the NHS Trust or other healthcare provider involved, gathering witness testimony and consulting with independent medical experts.
Our goal will be to clearly establish the facts of the case, including exactly what happened, how this negatively impacted your/your loved one’s health and the full consequences for your/your loved one’s life.
Sending a letter of claim
Once we are satisfied that your case is as strong as possible, we will send a letter to the Defendant setting out the details of your claim and, in broad terms, the likely compensation you are seeking to resolve the matter.
The Defendant’s response
The Defendant is required to respond to your claim within four months, although there are occasions when their investigations take longer than this. Where necessary, we will take action to ensure they respond in a timely fashion to keep your claim on track.
At this point, the Defendant can admit full or partial liability for the negligence and its consequences, or deny responsibility for any wrongdoing. If they admit liability, they will normally offer some level of settlement.
Considering the Defendant’s response
Whatever response the defendant gives, we will talk you through your options. If a settlement offer is made we will advise whether it is fair. However, if no settlement is offered, or we feel the settlement offered is too low, we will advise you of your other options. This could include attempting to negotiate a more favourable settlement or taking court action.
Issuing court proceedings
If we advise taking further action, we will start court proceedings by issuing your claim and submitting ‘Particulars of Claim’ setting out the details of your case to the court.
The Defendant will then have 28 days to respond. The court will then set the timetable for the litigation, including a date for a judge to hear your case. This is typically around 18 months from when the Defendant responds to your claim but will be longer in more complex claims or claims where there is reliance on multiple experts.
The litigation from this point will involve the exchange of witness statements and expert reports between the parties.
It is important to note, however, that even claims that reach this stage rarely make it to court as they can usually be resolved earlier through pre-trial negotiations.
Pre-trial negotiations
In the period before your hearing date, we will work with you, the Defendant and their legal team to try to agree an out-of-court settlement. This may involve direct negotiations, as well as alternate dispute resolution methods, such as mediation.
In most cases, this approach is highly successful. Our medical negligence solicitors have a very strong track record of achieving positive outcomes during pre-trial negotiations, saving our clients time, money and the stress of attending a hearing.
Trial by judge
In the unlikely event we are not able to reach a satisfactory settlement before a case reaches court, we will ensure you have the very best possible representation for your hearing. With our experience and expertise in court hearings, we can ensure your case is effectively built and presented and that no potential angle is overlooked.
We will also instruct at least one specialist clinical negligence barrister who will advise on strategy for the hearing and will present your case on the day. For particularly complex cases we generally recommend a senior barrister (often a KC – a King’s Counsel) as well as a leading junior advocate to provide additional support.
Medical negligence claim hearings and trials are heard in front of a judge without a jury. They give both sides an opportunity to present their arguments and supporting evidence. The judge will then make a final decision.
Medical negligence FAQs
Clinical or medical negligence is an area of law that enables you to claim compensation for injury or loss suffered as a result of negligent medical treatment.
A healthcare professional may provide negligent medical treatment if they fail to provide a service that meets the minimum acceptable standard for their profession. This could include failing to diagnose a condition, prescribing the wrong medicine or making a mistake during surgery.
However, a mistake doesn’t automatically entitle you to compensation. You also need to prove that the negligent treatment caused your injury or loss.
If you’re considering suing a hospital or a medical professional for clinical or medical negligence, you’ll need to consult a lawyer and make a compensation claim through the courts.
To be successful, we need to prove that the care you received fell below the accepted standard for that profession and that you suffered physical and/or psychological injury as a direct result.
Our specialist medical negligence lawyers will explain the claims process to you in detail. They will also obtain your medical records and consult medical experts before assessing whether your negligence compensation claim is able to be pursued.
Yes, you can claim medical compensation on behalf of your child if they’re under 18, or a person who you have legal responsibility for because they lack mental or physical capacity. You can also make a claim for compensation if a close relative or partner died due to medical negligence.
Medical negligence claims must be issued within three years of the negligent treatment, or within three years of you knowing of potential negligent treatment. Exceptions apply to adults who lack mental capacity and children. We recommend that you contact our clinical and medical negligence lawyers as soon as possible to talk about your options.
It depends entirely on the nature and complexity of your clinical negligence claim. If you have a suitable basis for a claim, we may be able to offer a funding arrangement, such as ‘no win, no fee”.
For further information and an overview of your options, visit our page on funding your medical negligence claim.
Alternatively, call our specialist team on 0117 325 2929 for an informal chat.
Legal aid is only available in cases involving children who have suffered serious brain injury during pregnancy, childbirth or during their first eight weeks of life.
If this injury has resulted in severe disability to the child, public funding may be available to investigate a medical negligence claim.
To check whether your child is eligible for medical negligence legal aid, call us on 0117 325 2929. We can let you know whether your claim might qualify in principal for assistance. We can also make a legal aid claim on your child’s behalf.
An interested party is one that has a right to examine a witness at a death inquest. They include a member of the deceased’s family (or a legal professional instructed to represent the family), a beneficiary under the deceased’s life insurance policy, a person or body who may have caused or contributed to the death or any other person the Coroner deems to be ‘properly’ interested.
An Article II inquest is held when the death involved a government agency, such as the police or prison service, or if the person died whilst detained under the Mental Health Act. The majority of Article II inquests are held with a jury.
Yes, while a claim is ongoing, it is possible to transfer your medical negligence claim from one firm to another.
If you or someone you care for has experienced negligent medical care, it’s vital that you get the right legal support. If you are already receiving legal advice regarding your medical negligence claim and you are not happy with the advice or service you have received, you can contact our specialist team by calling 0117 325 2929.
Useful information about medical negligence
- A straightforward guide to Medical Negligence
- Case studies of medical negligence claims
- Feedback from our medical negligence clients
- Suing the NHS – is it ethical?
- Ways to fund a medical negligence claim
How we can help
If you’ve suffered from negligent medical treatment, our medical negligence solicitors are here to help. We work with clients all over England and Wales, and we regularly travel to see our clients.
For an informal discussion about a potential medical negligence claim with a member of our team, call us on 0117 325 2929 or complete our online enquiry form.