‘Oracular and opaque’ are the words Jackson L.J. uses of the Animals Act in a judgment (Goldsmith v Patchcott [2012] EWCA Civ 183) which is impeccably logical and clear. The facts are the easy bit: ‘Red’ was a horse who reared and then bucked violently, throwing the claimant to the ground and then striking her in the face with its hoof and causing her nasty injuries. Hold t... [Continue Reading]

At least you know where you are with the NHSLA. The same is true of the various medical defence organisations. Can the same be said for the new regime proposed under the Health and Social Care Bill (HSCB)? If there are gaps in the indemnity arrangements for NHS care, what does this mean for claimants and defendants? On Friday (24 February 2012) the Department of Health (DOH) issued a short guid... [Continue Reading]

A short article in yesterday’s Guardian caught my eye (Let’s not add insult to personal injury: 20.2.12). It wasn’t the author’s commentary on David Cameron’s recent “Insurance Summit” that attracted my attention (see, Laura Johnson’s PIBLAWG piece a week ago). It wasn’t the reporting of the statistics, although it has to be admitted that these... [Continue Reading]

Beware of Rehman v Estate of JG Brady [2012] EWHC 78.  Claimants and Defendants should note that it contains a serious error of principle.                                     Facts:  A seven year old girl “hu... [Continue Reading]

Practice at the Bar provides an interesting perspective of the country's economic ups and downs.  I think many of us would cite anecdotal evidence that as soon as the economy begins to contract, claims where fraud is an issue begin to spike.  Whether this is due to defendants becoming more aware of the pennies and looking more closely at claims, or whether it is due to a genuine increase... [Continue Reading]

By a judgment handed down at Central London County Court on 10 February 2012 (Jones / Lucas v British Airways Limited (1) Heathrow Airport Limited (2)) Heathrow Airport Limited, represented by Laura Johnson, successfully defended claims by employees of British Airways that the paint used for ground markings on the airside aprons was unsuitable from a health and safety perspective.  &nbs... [Continue Reading]

  Gallagher v Wright (Manchester CC, Recorder Gregory, 25 November 2011 and 2 February 2012)   The Claimant (G) was a rear seat passenger   in a car travelling to Alicante airport, Spain when the Defendant driver (W) entered a slip road on the wrong side of the road and collided head on with a vehicle approaching in the opposite direction. The Claimant sustained multiple injuries a... [Continue Reading]

    The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000 is an important piece of legislation. Correctly used, it can bring into the public domain information that would otherwise be unknown to the general public. Yesterday (31 January) it led, indirectly, to the revelation that the James Bond villain that Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, would most like to be is Sir Hugo Drax in Ian Fleming... [Continue Reading]