A Guide To Examples Of Solicitor Negligence
This guide will provide you with potential examples of solicitor negligence. Within this guide, we will be looking specifically at solicitors that specialise in civil law claims such as personal injury and medical negligence claims.
Solicitors are considered professionals and therefore owe their clients a duty of care to provide them with the correct standard of services. If a solicitor were to breach their duty of care while representing your claim, this could lead to your claim failing and you losing the chance to pursue it any further.
We take a look at eligibility and the time limits that apply when making a professional negligence claim.
Additionally, if you have valid grounds to claim against a personal injury or medical negligence solicitor, you may wish to have the support of a No Win No Fee professional negligence solicitor. This guide concludes with a look at the advantages of having legal representation under the terms of a No Win No Fee agreement.
To discuss whether you have a potential claim and for further information, you can get in touch with one of our advisors using the contact details below:
- Contact us online.
- Call 0161 696 9685.
- Use our live chat.
Select A Section
- When Can You Make Professional Negligence Claims Against Solicitors?
- Examples Of Solicitor Negligence
- What Is The Professional Negligence Time Limit To Make A Claim?
- How Much Compensation For Solicitor’s Negligence?
- Why Use A No Win No Fee Professional Negligence Solicitor From Our Panel To Claim?
- Learn More About Examples Of Solicitor Negligence
When Can You Make Professional Negligence Claims Against Solicitors?
In order to pursue a claim for professional negligence against a solicitor, you will need to submit evidence that shows you were owed a duty of care and they breached this by providing you with services that did not meet the correct standard, and due to this, you experienced a loss. This could be a loss of chance to pursue your compensation claim any further This is what is meant by professional negligence.
The standards of professionalism solicitors are expected to adhere to come from a Code of Conduct outlined by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
There are different reasons why you might have valid grounds to make a professional negligence claim against a solicitor. We look at examples of solicitor negligence in the next section.
If you would like to find out how professional negligence solicitors can help you, please contact one of our advisors.
Examples Of Solicitor Negligence
As we discussed, solicitors are expected to meet the correct standard in the services they provide. If they do not meet these standards, you could experience a loss of chance, or the lost opportunity to pursue either part or all of your initial claim.
Some examples of solicitor negligence in personal injury claims include:
- Missing the time limit for personal injury cases means you won’t be able to pursue your claim because it is statute-barred once the limitation period has expired.
- Under-settling your claim by failing to consider proof you gave them of a psychological injury and instead only considering your physical pain and injuries. Alternatively, they may not have included loss of earnings in your settlement when you gave them clear evidence of this monetary loss. Either of these could result in receiving a smaller compensation award.
- The claim is struck out due to your solicitor’s actions or inactions, such as failing to adhere to court-set instructions and deadlines.
Please contact our advisors to discuss your specific case. The advice they give is free.
What Is The Professional Negligence Time Limit To Make A Claim?
When you make a professional negligence claim against a solicitor, you will need to prove both that negligence occurred and that your personal injury or medical negligence claim would have succeeded if it weren’t for the actions, or lack of actions, of your solicitor.
In addition to having sufficient evidence to prove your claim, you must start the claiming process within the time limit. Generally, this is 6 years as set in Section 2 of the Limitation Act 1980.
If you would like to discuss what evidence you need in a professional negligence claim and whether you are within the limitation period, please contact one of the advisors from our team. They can also discuss examples of solicitor negligence with you.
How Much Compensation For Solicitor’s Negligence?
If your professional negligence case against your personal injury solicitor is successful, you would receive compensation in a similar way. If you proved your initial personal injury claim would have 100% succeeded, then you will receive the full amount of your compensation. So you will be awarded both general and special damages as you would have been in your initial claim.
General damages compensate for your physical pain and mental suffering; whereas special damages seek to recover monetary losses caused by being injured.
Additionally, you could receive 8% interest for each year that has passed.
General Damages
Legal professionals refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help value personal injury claims. It lists various injuries with figures for potential compensation. In our table below, we’ve included a few examples from the 16th edition of the JCG. It is only to be used as guidance.
| Injury | Details | Compensation Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| Severe Hip and Pelvis Injuries (i) | This bracket includes extensive pelvis fractures that cause substantial residual disabilities. | £78,400 to £130,930 |
| Severe Leg Injuries - Very Serious (ii) | This bracket is appropriate for injuries that cause permanent mobility problems. | £54,830 to £87,890 |
| Severe Neck Injuries (iii) | The award considers how long the most serious symptoms from fractures, dislocations or soft tissue damage lasted, treatment required and prognosis. | £45,470 to £55,990 |
| Moderately Severe Psychiatric Damage | The claimant has experienced significant problems coping with life, but the prognosis is more optimistic than in more severe cases. | £19,070 to £54,830 |
| Serious Foot Injuries | The claimant suffers continuing pain along with prolonged treatment. | £24,990 to £39,200 |
| Less Severe Arm Injuries | The claimant suffered significant disabilities but have recovered to a substantial degree. | £19,200 to £39,170 |
| Moderate Back Injuries (ii) | The award considers the severity of the original injury, pain levels, treatment required both past and future, the impact the symptoms have on the claimant's lifestyle and prognosis. | £12,510 to £27,760 |
| Nose Fracture (i) | The claimant experienced serious or multiple fractures to their nose leading to permanent airway damage or facial deformity. | £10,640 to £23,130 |
| Moderate Shoulder Injuries | This bracket is appropriate for frozen shoulder causing movement limitations and discomfort with symptoms lasting about 2 years and soft tissue injuries that are more than minimal with symptoms that are longer lasting but not permanent. | £7,890 to £12,770 |
| Moderate or Minor Elbow Injuries | The claimant has suffered an injury that did not cause permanent damage or functioning impairments. | Up to £12,590 |
Special Damages
Specials damages cover financial losses that could be recovered in a personal injury claim:
- Adaptations to your home, such as fitting a wheelchair ramp if this was needed to cope with your injuries.
- Care costs, whether carried out by professionals, friends or family.
- Medical expenses, which may include the cost of prescriptions as well as therapy and physiotherapy.
To talk about examples of solicitor negligence and what your claim might be worth, please get in touch with an advisor from our team.
Why Use A No Win No Fee Professional Negligence Solicitor From Our Panel To Claim?
If you have grounds for a valid claim, one of the professional negligence solicitors from our panel could help you. They have lots of experience with claims of this nature.
The solicitors from our panel generally offer their services under the terms of a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
When a solicitor provides their services on a No Win No Fee basis, they won’t ask for any upfront or ongoing payments.
If your solicitor succeeds with your claim, they will take a success fee from your compensation award. This success fee is a percentage of the compensation that has a legislative cap. If you are not awarded compensation, your solicitor won’t request that you pay this fee.
Contact Us For Free To See If You Can Claim Compensation For Professional Negligence
If you need free advice, please contact an advisor from our team. If it seems like you have grounds for a claim, they could also connect you with one of the solicitors from our panel.
To talk about examples of solicitor negligence with an advisor:
- Contact us online.
- Call 0161 696 9685.
- Use our live chat.
Learn More About Examples Of Solicitor Negligence
Additional guides:
- Claim Against A Solicitor
- Examples Of Professional Negligence
- Compensation For Professional Negligence
External links that could be helpful: