Legal support

Serious injury

All incidents are distressing, but an incident that results in a serious or catastrophic injury is particularly traumatic for the injured person and their loved ones.

Why choose Hugh James?

Our team provides expert advice and services to ensure that you receive the highest possible level of compensation. We ensure that you get the best care, treatment and rehabilitation following a serious injury to help you move forward with your life.

We are proud to be trusted legal partners of the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA) and approved as brain injury solicitors by Headway UK and hold numerous volunteer positions within local Headway groups in England and Wales.

We are trusted legal panel members of the Limbless Association, Child Brain Injury Trust (CBIT), UKABIF, Brake, Roadpeace and 2Wish.

We are also accredited by the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) and the Law Society.

Our solicitors have been consistently ranked in the top tiers by the independent legal guides, Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners, as leaders in the field of personal injury – specifically spinal cord and brain injury litigation.

Amputation

Suffering a traumatic injury or medical condition that results in the loss of a limb is life changing. This is particularly tragic when the injury or condition leading to the amputation could have been avoided. If this is the case, we may be able to help you claim compensation and fund rehabilitation.

We have specialist solicitors who advise clients who have suffered limb loss as a result of:

• Road traffic collisions
• Incidents abroad
• Incidents at work
• Military incidents, both on and off duty

From the outset, our experienced team will advise you on the claims process, making it as straight forward as possible for you and will provide you with regular updates throughout your case.

We will seek to put early rehabilitation in place for you with a specialist multi-disciplinary team such as a case manager, prosthetist, psychologist, physiotherapist, occupational therapist, and support workers or carers (if needed) and they will support you during your claim. We will also try to get some of your compensation paid early – known as interim payments – to help with any financial losses.

Head and brain injury

Traumatic brain injuries have life changing implications for you and your family. Quality care, treatment and rehabilitation are essential to ensure that you make the best possible recovery and you and your family feel supported

If your injury, or that of a family member, was caused by an incident which wasn’t your fault, or was only partially your fault, or due to an assault, you are entitled to make a claim for compensation.

To find out if you have a claim, it is important to speak with a friendly law firm as soon as possible to provide you with expertise and experience in this complex and specialist area.

Working with specialist case managers, neuropsychologists, neuro physiotherapists and speech and language therapists, our experienced solicitors can arrange the best possible care and treatment to help you regain your independence.

We put your interests first and can help you put your life back on track.

Child injury

We understand the impact trauma can have on a child and their family. Our specialist team know the importance of ensuring your child has access to everything they need for recovery.

Sadly, children suffer spinal injuries, brain injuries, polytrauma (i.e. multiple injuries) and amputations every year through no fault of their own. Injuries caused in incidents or collisions are usually deserving of personal injury compensation claims.

We believe every child should receive the rehabilitation and compensation they deserve following an injury and help families with children who have suffered traumatic injuries caused by:

• Road traffic collisions
• School incidents
• Cycling incidents
• Harm from a dangerous product
• Criminal assaults
• Rail incidents
• Playground/sporting incidents
• Fatal incidents

Whatever the nature of their injury, every child has the right to enjoy a healthy childhood and education as comfortably as possible. Any incident in which a child suffers injury is distressing and will often have long-term effects on the child and their family.

We act in the best interests of our child clients, and work closely with family members and guardians, to achieve the best results for our clients. We seek early funding for specialist rehabilitation and the compensation they need to meet their long-term needs.

Multiple injuries

All incidents are distressing, but an incident that results in multiple injuries is particularly traumatic for the individual and their loved ones. We know the potential life-changing repercussions multiple injuries can cause and take pride in helping people to access early rehabilitation and to claim compensation.

Multiple injuries are commonly known by medical professionals as ‘polytrauma’. Polytrauma can include:

• Severe fractures
• Internal organ loss or damage
• Head/brain injuries
• Spinal injuries
• Severe skin or tissue damage
• Limb loss
• Burns
• Neurological injuries

These types of injuries can be complex and lead to long-term or even permanent impairment. Rehabilitation for polytrauma should be timely and appropriate. Many individuals require ongoing therapy following their discharge from hospital and we work with case managers and therapists to put holistic rehabilitation in place as quickly as possible.

If you or a loved one has suffered multiple injuries, it can leave you feeling very unsure about the future.

The psychological impact often brings anxiety and a loss of confidence. Many people find their life changes and becomes more challenging, with work and social aspects being restricted considerably by the injuries.

Our specialist solicitors will provide immediate and ongoing support and ensure you receive appropriate compensation leaving you to focus on your recovery.

Severe burns

Severe burns can result in permanent disfigurement, scarring and psychological upset. We know how distressing severe burns can be for our clients and their family.

Burns do not just affect the skin; they can also affect joints, damage nerves, result in horrendous pain and reduce mobility. Scarring can be particularly disfiguring and psychologically distressing. After acute care in a dedicated burns unit long term rehabilitation may be required including further surgery.

Incidents that cause severe burns can occur in any setting, with the most common being:

• Commercial kitchens, such as a
  restaurant
• Construction sites
• Road traffic collisions
• Severe skin or tissue damage
• House fires
• In a residential or educational setting

We ensure you obtain practical, clinical, and financial support to aid your physical and mental recovery.

Not only will we recover appropriate compensation for you, we will seek funding to put specialist rehabilitation in place, including a dedicated case manager, physiotherapist, occupational therapist and psychologist.

Claiming the compensation you deserve will help ensure you get the right care. The physical impact of scars and burns can lead to a loss of confidence, as can the need to rely on others during recovery. Many people are unable to work, enjoy hobbies such as sports and exercise, or even play with their children or grandchildren as they would like.

While no amount of money can erase the trauma and effects of what you have experienced, a compensation claim will help cover injury-related expenses. This will allow you to concentrate on your rehabilitation process without the financial burden. Your compensation could also help cover recovery costs, such as ongoing treatment and medication.

Spinal cord injury

In most cases the damage caused by a spinal cord injury is irreversible and can have a catastrophic impact on you and your family. Our specialist team can help you obtain the best possible care and treatment to help you regain your independence.

A spinal injury can happen in many different ways, whether during a collision, workplace incident or because of a fall from height. We understand that traumatic spinal injuries have life changing implications for an individual and their family. Quality care, treatment and rehabilitation are essential to ensure the continued health and wellbeing of a spinally injured person.

If you or a family member have suffered a spinal injury which was caused by an incident which wasn’t your fault, or was only partially your fault, or due to an assault, you are entitled to make a claim for compensation.

To find out if you have a claim it is important to speak to a specialist solicitor with experience in this complex area as soon as possible as there are certain time restrictions for pursuing a claim.

We are happy to visit our clients wherever they may be to have a face to face meeting depending on each person’s individual situation e.g. in hospital, rehab centre or at home.

We care deeply about each of our clients and want to ensure that they are given the opportunity to make the best possible recovery. We always put our clients’ interests first and deliver advice in a friendly and approachable way and take pride in helping our clients to put their lives back on track. We strive to achieve the best outcome for our clients at each stage of their claim, both in terms of rehabilitation to help optimise recovery and when it comes to negotiating the compensation settlement of the claim out of court or at trial.

How can we help?

Hugh James has extensive experience in handling compensation claims for people who have suffered serious injuries, both in the UK and abroad.

Our team of specialist solicitors provides expert advice and services to ensure that you receive an appropriate level of compensation. We will seek to get you the best care, treatment and rehabilitation following your injury.

Our solicitors have been consistently ranked in the top tiers by the independent legal guides, Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners, as leaders in the field of personal injury and specifically serious injury litigation.

Why choose us?

Our team of friendly specialist solicitors provides expert advice and services to ensure that you receive the appropriate level of compensation and seek access to early rehabilitation.

Our specialist team includes welfare benefits advisors and a qualified social worker who can assist with all kinds of immediate financial challenges and practical needs.

We also have a former police officer/ family liaison officer (FLO) who is able to assist with complex issues and police
investigations.

We can advise you on the following:

• The Hugh James Emergency Fund and how it can assist you and your family
• Obtaining private rehabilitation
• Interim payments
• Welfare benefits and emergency funding
• Employment concerns
• Charities that can assist you
• Wills, trusts and power of attorney
• Dealing with mortgage, credit card and loan providers following a spinal cord injury
• Investigating any potential insurance cover that may benefit you
• Social services and local authority funding for care and equipment
• Human and disability rights

What is the claims process?

The process can be a lengthy one, requiring detailed evidence to show the full impact your injuries have on you and your family. Your specialist injury solicitor will gather evidence to help value the claim and you will need to meet with specific experts so they can provide their opinions on the nature and extent of your injuries.

You may also be required to attend court if a settlement cannot be reached through out of court negotiations. Most cases do however settle out of court.

Choosing the right solicitor who is a specialist is key to ensuring that you achieve the best outcome.

Don’t be afraid to ask your solicitor about their experience and past cases they have dealt with. A solicitor who is used to dealing with the insurance companies and defendant solicitors who work in this area will fight on your behalf from day one, seeking an early admission of liability, ensuring you receive early funding or interim payments to pay for equipment you need for your rehabilitation, treatment and daily living and progressing your claim to obtain the best possible award of compensation.

Your solicitor will travel to meet with you face to face, regardless of wherever you are and will also use video calls, telephone, email, and other methods of communication to suit your wishes. We recognise that it is important to have regular communication with you, so you are fully informed and in control of your case.

Our Serious Injury Team has been consistently top ranked by independent legal guides for their expertise in this area of law. We offer free consultations, allowing you to ask us any questions you may have, without obligation.

How will I fund my claim?

There are a number of ways that you may be able to fund a claim. As each case is different, the best option is to speak to your solicitor about your circumstances, but your options normally fall into one of three categories:

Legal expenses

The first port of call is to check if you have insurance that covers legal expenses (in some cases this may be attached to a home insurance policy). If you do have insurance that covers legal expenses, we will ask the insurer to pay your legal fees. In the event that you win your case, the legal fees will either be paid by the defendant insurer or by your legal expenses insurer.

Privately funded

If your solicitor is not confident that you will be successful in your claim but you want to move forward with it anyway, you always have the option to cover your legal fees yourself. This is a decision that you will need to consider carefully. However if you decide to fund your claim, your specialist solicitor will be there to help explain everything to you in a way that you understand so that you can make the best decision for your circumstances.

CFA

If you do not have insurance, and your solicitor determines that there is a reasonable chance of bringing a successful claim then you may be offered a conditional fee agreement (CFA). CFAs are sometimes known as “no win, no fee” agreements. In these situations, your solicitor is taking the risk because they will not be paid unless the claim is successful.

Why a no win no fee agreement ensures you have no financial risk

A Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) is more commonly known as a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement. This ensures that you will not have any financial risk when making a claim against another person or company.

In fact, the only time you would have to make any payment for legal costs would be if you are successful in your claim in respect of a success fee.

How do no win, no fee claims work?

From the outset of your claim we will provide an initial free assessment to find out if you have a legal basis for making a claim.

If we find that you do have a claim, we will then discuss funding options with you. If we recommend that you take out an after the event insurance policy in combination with a no win, no fee agreement as your best option, this guarantees that you will have no financial risk if you are unsuccessful.

If your claim is successful

If you are successful in your claim, your opponent should pay most of your legal costs. For the avoidance of doubt:

• Any legal costs that are not covered by your opponent may be deducted from the compensation that you receive
• You will be updated regularly on the charges you may incur and any charges not recovered from your opponent will be deducted from your compensation

Costs that are not payable by your opponent include:

• The premium on your after the event insurance policy to cover your disbursements
• A “Success Fee” which compensates us for taking on the risk of your claim, if applicable

If your claim is unsuccessful

If you have taken out after the event insurance policy, there will be no financial risk of you paying any legal costs if your claim is unsuccessful, provided you have complied with the terms of the insurance policy*. This means:

• You will be fully covered for all your disbursements through the insurance policy
• You are protected from having to pay your opponent’s legal costs through the insurance policy
• You will be updated regularly on the charges you may incur

*Subject to entering into a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement in conjunction with our after the event insurance policy and always providing you are honest and comply with your responsibilities under the conditional fee agreement, and the terms and conditions of the after the event insurance.

How is compensation calculated?

It is important to remember that every case is different, and no two people are affected by an injury in the same way. We will look at compensation for your injury as well as the financial losses that you have now and will face in the future because of the incident. These are known as General Damages and Special Damages.

General damages

This part of the claim is to compensate you for the injury itself; the pain, suffering and loss of amenity that you have gone through and will continue to experience. It also considers what you would have been able to do had it not been for the incident.

So we can accurately assess this part of the claim, we will arrange for medico-legal reports from various leading specialists. They will examine you and have access to your medical records and be able to provide an accurate diagnosis and prognosis within their reports. Once we have this evidence, we will be able to advise you how much we think your claim is going to be worth.

Special damages

This part of the claim looks at past and future financial losses that have already been incurred or will be incurred as a direct result of the incident which caused your injuries.

Past losses include:

• Private medical treatment and rehabilitation
• Prescription charges/medication
• The purchase of aids and appliances
• Loss of earnings
• Travel expenses
• Care costs
• Personal belongings and clothing damaged in the incident
• Housing adaptions

Future losses can include:

• Care
• Loss of earnings
• Loss of pension
• Accommodation costs
• Future private medical treatment and rehabilitation
• Aids and appliances

These lists are not exhaustive. We will consider everyone’s individual and unique circumstances to ensure everything is included.

It is helpful to start keeping a list of things that you have had to pay for as a direct result of the incident. We will need to prove all financial losses and documentary evidence such as wage slips, receipts and invoices will be very important to prove your special damages claim. It may also be sensible to keep a log or brief diary of problems that you encounter day to day.

Rehabilitation

We pride ourselves in taking a holistic approach. As specialist solicitors we have seen the benefits that early intervention and access to first class rehabilitation can provide to our clients.

Our aim therefore is not only to ensure that you have the best opportunity of recovering the maximum level of compensation, we also aim to improve your long term physical and mental well-being; ensuring that you have access to the best rehabilitation and specialist medical care
possible.

At our initial meeting, we will explore the potential rehabilitation opportunities which are available to you.

Often we can arrange an Immediate Needs Assessment (INA) funded by the defendant and carried out by a rehabilitation professional (e.g. qualified Independent Case Manager) very soon after you instruct us.

The INA report will consider a range of issues, including:

• The injury/disability for which early intervention or early rehabilitation is suggested
• The type of clinical intervention or treatment required in both the short and medium term
• The likely cost and duration of recommended rehabilitation or treatment, their goals and duration, with anticipated outcomes

Once both parties have received the INA report, the rehabilitation and other recommendations it contains will potentially be wholly or partially funded by the defendant. Even if the claim fails, rehabilitation funding obtained under the 2015 Rehabilitation Code is, usually, non-repayable. Once liability is accepted by the defendant, we will be able to seek general interim payments to fund ongoing rehabilitation.

We have relationships with many of the leading specialist residential rehabilitation centres in the UK. As part of our service we can provide you with insight into the sector and how we have successfully assisted our client’s rehabilitation journeys.

Bereavement resource hub

Losing a family member is one of the most challenging experiences one can face. It can leave your world in turmoil, leaving you unsure of where
to turn, what steps to take, or who to seek help from.

This sense of confusion can be even greater when a death occurs suddenly and unexpectedly, especially if it might have been preventable.

Our dedicated webpage aims to provide guidance and support, helping you find the advice you need and navigate the practical matters that arise during such an incredibly difficult time. This includes:

• Arranging funerals
• Last wishes
• Probate and estate administration
• Inheritance tax
• Power of attorney
• Private wealth disputes
• Sorting out finances
• Family law matters
• Nursing care

Visit hughjames.com/bereavement for further information and to find out how we can help you.