Comments for Mark Thompson Law

Comment on Child brain injury and rehabilitation by Louise Wilkinson

Louise Wilkinson — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 22:17:54 +0000

Hi Mark

Fully agree about need for rehabilitation following childhood ABI. For the large percentage of children and young people affected at the mild to moderate end of the scale, school will be their main rehabilitation. The difficulty is that those professionals providing the “rehab” have received no training or information about supporting the very different special educational needs of this group of children.

We would always encourage the inclusion of training provision for the school team (teachers, heads of year, learning support assistants – even Educational Psychologists – if there is a claim then this provision should be included in calculations.

See our web site for more info

Regards
Louise
Child Brain Injury Trust

Comment on I want to change solicitor by Mark Thompson

Mark Thompson — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:05:58 +0000

The first point is that where a counterclaim has been made against the Claimant, and the Claimant has an insurance policy which covers liability to third parties, that insurer must be contacted as quickly as possible. A counterclaim is where the Defendant brings an action against the Claimant, so both are suggesting the other is at fault. I am assuming the Claimant was a car driver so would hopefully have own insurance.
On the general question I cannot give specific advice on the case as I have no information, but I can give you a few pointers:
1. It is a solicitor’s duty to get proper instructions from a client. How were instructions obtained in this case, and was a language difficulty known about or should it have been obvious? Was the client actually seen to take a statement as so much is done by questionnaire or over the telephone?
2. If there has been a misunderstanding the solicitor can explain this to the other side, but if a client’s version of events has changed then that is a serious problem.
3. A conditional fee agreement places an obligation on the client whose instructions must be honest and accurate. Breaching that condition allows the solicitor to withdraw from the conditional fee agreement.
4. Inconsistencies do arise, and usually become obvious when the other party puts forward their own case.
5. Does the client have any form of legal expenses insurance? Such an insurer must be informed of any change in the prospects of success of the case, and the problem which has occurred seems to be one which must be reported.
6. Remember the protection from legal costs offered by a conditional fee agreement is only for your own solicitors’ fee. The client is liable for own disbursements and the solicitor fees and disbursements of the other side, hence my question, does the client have any insurance to cover these legal costs?

Talking is always a good idea so the solicitor should meet with the client to sort this out. Talking is usually better than defensive letters and making contractual points.

Let me have some more information and I hope I can help.

Comment on I want to change solicitor by Mrs M name supplied but not shown for privacy

Mrs M name supplied but not shown for privacy — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:50:39 +0000

Dear Mr Thompson,
I believe that the current solicitor has mishandled the claim of a client regarding his personal injuries as a result of road traffic accident, by not providing an interpreter/translator due to language barriers and is not only alleging the client of inconsistencies also putting him in breach of contract on “no win no fee basis.” The client is adamant that his statements are as best as he was able to understand and his reply was as best as he could communicate. As a result of this misunderstanding the client is now faced with a counter claim and has been given a notice to attend the court. Further more the solicitor at this stage, has written a risk assessment notice giving the 30% success chance, and is refusing to represent the client further, has also asked for £2000 in advance. In addition all fees for both sides would be come payable by the client in the event of loosing . Please let us know the options a s a p many thanks with kind regards.

Comment on Gratuitous care in compensation claims by Mark Thompson

Mark Thompson — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 20:10:01 +0000

Care means everything from a 24/7 nursing regime to a few hours of supervision or assistance. Together with wage loss care is often the highest value element of a personal injury claim.
The need for care depends on the opinions of the experts giving evidence in a case, and that care has to be very carefully assessed particularly with the future in mind. It is vital to avoid the position where the injured person cannot have a decent standard of living because of a constant fear the money will run out.
One pit fall is over-reliance on family members to provide care. People become unwell, they age, and circumstances change. All this has to be carefully weighed up with the help of the most experienced personal injury solicitors.
In very basic terms the calculation takes into account the annual cost of care at today’s price. That amount is multiplied by a figure based on the life expectancy of the injured person. Build into that calculation is a factor which takes account of the decrease in the value of money, the assumption being that personal injury compensation will be very cautiously invested.
The law is determined not to make you wealthy, and the calculation is little more than a glorified expenses claim. You see newspaper reports of judgments and settlements of several millions of pounds. All of that money is carefully calculated, and is intended to be spent over the course of the injured persons life to provide what they need. It is also the intention that by the time the injured person dies the money will be spent.
There are options available like periodical payments where the insurer, and often the NHS, pays out for care on an annual basis. The advantage is that this arrangement can take account of increasing care needs. Injured people do not like a permanent tie to the organisation which put them in their sorry situation, but it is an option.
There are also ways of investing which save on tax paid by those relying on compensation.
The work of the personal injury solicitor is not done when the compensation cheque is received. We must understand the needs of the client and their family, and make sure the right long term advice is in place.
More information is available at http://www.markthompsonlaw.com/beyond-compensation/

Thanks for the question Mike, and let me know if you want more specific help.

Comment on Gratuitous care in compensation claims by Matthew

Matthew — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 20:39:48 +0000

If the claimant is going to need ‘care’ assistance for the rest of his/her life or at least for the foreseeable future, how is this calculated and if a carer is needed for life, how is the lifetime of the claimant estimated and will the claimant be able to claim and receive payment for all future care up until the end of his life?

Comment on Interim payment in personal injury by Mark Thompson

Mark Thompson — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:17:46 +0000

An interim payment can be made in a case for compensation which is very likely to succeed. An interim payment can be obtained with the agreement of the insurer of the Defendant, or by Order of the Court. It is a payment on account of the compensation due. The point of an interim payment is that the injured person is not left in financial difficulty by an accident and because of that financial difficulty feels pressure to accept a low offer. There is good reason to seek an interim payment if recovery is taking some time and you are down on your income or have incurred expenses. Interim payments are usually based on the financial losses caused by an accident, and the injury itself is usually ignored for this valuation.
There should be no disadvantage in the final negotiation, and you have the advantage of not feeling under financial pressure.
Beware that an interim payment has to be repaid if the final settlement or Court award is below the value of the interim payment. So there is a danger if your case is over valued and you cannot ultimately prove that value.
One point often overlooked is that an interim payment my effect your entitlement to State benefits. You must check this carefully and please note you can legitimately overcome this issue by setting up a personal injury trust. Click here for more information about personal injury trusts.

Comment on Interim payment in personal injury by Opal Hodge

Opal Hodge — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 23:44:30 +0000

I have been offered an interim payment following a car accident whereby the third party has accepted liability for my whiplash. The treatment given is yet to make a difference to my I injuries & the case is stilly settled. I am concerned that if I accept the inteim payment this will hinder the amount of my settlement figure?

Please advise.

Many Thanks

Comment on Gratuitous care in compensation claims by Mark Thompson

Mark Thompson — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 10:24:58 +0000

Dear Margaret,
The care provided was unpaid. The care was above and beyond the usual family regime and is given a financial value within the personal injury compensation of the injured person. The claim for gratuitous care exists within the injured persons claim only.
As the carer cannot bring their own separate claim any payment for care is included with the compensation of the injured person, and paid to the injured person.
The injured person holds the payment for gratuitous care on trust for the person who provided the care. It has been awarded on the basis it will be paid over to the carer.
If a couple are separating and one has provided care which is included within a compensation case I would hope the money recovered would be paid to the carer. If difficulty is likely the most practical thing to do is for the carer to write to the solicitor acting for the injured person, explaining the separation, and ask for payment direct from the solicitor once compensation is received. The solicitor may not be able to do this as compensation cheques are often made out in the client’s name. Also you cannot oblige the solicitor to make payment to the carer, as the solicitor is bound by their client’s instructions. However solicitor will advise the client of their obligation as trustee and hopefully a payment will be made.
Technically a request and legal action could be brought against the trustee, the injured person in this case, but the practicality of this depends on the amount involved balanced against the likely legal costs.
If there is to be a divorce you will need specialist advice. There was a time when the compensation from a personal injury case was not part of the capital to be shared within a divorce, except for the amount of compensation which related to earnings loss. I believe this has changed, and all money is in the “pot.” I am not a divorce lawyer so do not take my word for it and get specialist advice. If I am right the money recovered for gratuitous care might just find its way into that general pot, even though it belongs to the carer.
Let me know how you get on.

Comment on Gratuitous care in compensation claims by margaret

margaret — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 16:17:04 +0000

If the claim is made by the carer for 2yrs care for example, but in the meantime the couple are splitting up. Does the money still go to the person who is to get the compensation payment. The injured person who recieves their compensation payment will not hand the money over to the person who cared for them, what happens then? does the carers compensation still go to the person injured? or will it be payed direct to the carer?

Comment on Motorcycle filtering through traffic by John Roberts

John Roberts — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:14:53 +0000

I was looking for this information as i was knocked of my bike in January. I have fully comp insurance with protected full NCD but still have to go after the other party via DAS for my uninsured items. I was behind the car in question which was stationary behind a bus that was stationary also. i could see for a 100 meters on a clear road and checked, indicated and made my move to overtake both vehicles, on coming along side the offside rear wing of the car, it decided to indicate and pull out at the same time, coming in to my side and subsequently knocking me of my bike. In fact I leant on the wing of the car and only fell off when the bloody thing moved away. The impact withj the ground wa enough to cause twelve hundred pounds with or damage. Fortunately I incurred very little to talk about, a bruised muscle on the checst cause by impact with the end of the handlebar and that was it. My unisured losses amount to a visit to the doctor and a presciption. Recent conact with DAS solicitors have indicated the other party are not admitting liability and in fact say its my fault. My account of the RTA was compiled within hours of the incident when it was fresh in my mind and therefore full of detail. I very much doubt they did they did the same. This is a case in Guernsey Channel Islands, but the law is no different here as we adopt the UK Highway Code and therefore applies the same. Thanks for the case studies they seem to be pretty much freely available on the net, but your site puts it better

Kind Regards

John Roberts

Comment on Contributory negligence by Work at Height Regulations 2005 | Mark Thompson Law

Work at Height Regulations 2005 | Mark Thompson Law — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 13:35:22 +0000

[...] There is a useful explanation of contributory negligence on this site – please click here. [...]

Comment on Contact by I want to change solicitor | Mark Thompson Law

I want to change solicitor | Mark Thompson Law — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 18:02:04 +0000

[...] Contact us now for help. [...]

Comment on Legal expenses insurance by Mark

Mark — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:06:38 +0000

Thank you for your question.
Your close friend is correct, free accident legal expenses cover is available through YourKey, which is a trading style of this practice.
The concept came from frustration with the legal expenses insurance which is sold to every person who buys an insurance policy on a vehicle. The cost is rising, and I would say £25 is a fair average per vehicle. It is you who needs legal expenses insurance, not your vehicle, and by limiting cover to use of one vehicle you are being sold limited cover at a rather high price.
It also has to be said, that when you contact your insurer after an accident which is the fault of someone else, the insurer will receive commission for arranging the services you need, and referring your case to a solicitor. By contacting YourKey first that commission can be used to cover the cost of the legal expenses insurance given away.
YourKey gives the policy away free, and renews it each year without cost.
The cover is also wide, and includes your wife/partner, children at home under 21 years, and your passengers and pillions.
To sign up just visit http://www.yourkey.info/become-a-member
I reckon if you have two cars in your family you will save enough to buy breakdown cover.
Let me know what you think.
Best wishes
Mark Thompson

Comment on Legal expenses insurance by Mr P J Hey

Mr P J Hey — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:25:56 +0000

Hello,
A Close friend of mine has a “your key policy”, and he asked me to contact yourselfs to see if i could obtain a free policy from you.

Thanking you

Mr P J Hey.