Clinical negligence litigation can be a long road but lawyers will not give up in helping you to reach your destination. That was certainly so in the case of a teenage girl who received multi-million-pound compensation after she was born facing a lifetime of serious disability.
The 18-year-old suffers from acute, profound cerebral palsy characterised by severe mobility difficulties and requires 24-hour care. She has, however, developed into a delightful young woman with a close group of friends and she greatly enjoys her studies at a residential college.
It was alleged that there was a negligent failure to administer a drug during the ante-natal period that would have delayed her delivery. The NHS trust that managed the hospital where she was born fought the case and there was a seven-day trial of the action. However, a compromise of liability issues was in the end agreed shortly before a judge was due to hand down her ruling on the case.
The trust agreed to pay 50 per cent of the full value of her claim. On that basis, a final settlement of her case was later successfully negotiated, whereby the trust agreed to pay her a £4,984,780 lump sum. She would also receive substantial annual index-linked payments towards meeting the ongoing cost of her care for the rest of her life. Interim payments of compensation had enabled her to purchase a property of her own that would be adapted to meet her needs.
The High Court had no hesitation in approving the extremely good and sensible settlement, which would enable her to be well provided for. Although it had been a long journey to the end of the litigation, the Court noted that she and her parents, who had given her unstinting care, had been well advised throughout.