Neil Block

Joint head of Chambers. Barrister specialising in professional negligence (including clinical negligence); personal injury and disease cases (including sport), insurance (policy construction and coverage disputes, non-disclosure and misrepresentations), product liability, jurisdiction, contract and commercial. Cases include: Pike v IHCL [2013] the claims arising out of the terrorist bombing of the Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai; Stylianou v Toyoshima [2013] jurisdiction issues arising out of an accident in Australia; The Estate of Sir James Wilson Saville [2014] claims arising out of the sexual abuse of children by Jimmy Saville; Smolden v Nolan [1997] PIQR 133 (first case brought in which a referee is sued for failing to control the game resulting in injury to a player); McGregor v Prudential [1988] Lloyds LR (insurance fraud); O’Neil v Fashanu (player-on-player injury); North East, North West and Isle of Wight Shipyards litigation (multi-party asbestos related litigation); Watson v British Boxing Board of Control [2000] CA (liability of sports regulatory body); Gnitrow v Cope Plc [2000] CA (disclosability of confidential agreement); Re: ‘The Supertram Litigation’ [2003] EWCA Civ 1 (liability of highway authorities and tram operators – professional negligence of project manager); A v National Blood Authority (the Hepatitis C litigation); Skandia 4 Group Action – ergonomics of lorry cabs; Allport v Wilbrahim [2003] (successfully defended a claim by a rugby player against a referee in which the claimant alleged that catastrophic injuries sustained in a scrummage were the fault of the referee); Re Bondcare [2003] (a £20m claim alleging negligence against a project manager/quantity surveyor in relation to a hotel development); Miller & Gray v Shoreline [2003] (a claim alleging negligence of project manager and engineer in relation to a coastal protection scheme); ICF v Claims Advance (a claim involving thousands of cases in which insurance coverage issues arise); Whalley v Stoke DC [2006] CA (landmark case on withdrawal of pre-action admissions); the Northwick Park drug trial claims; Pollard v Tesco Stores [2006] EWCA Civ 393 (product liability – interaction of CPA 1987 and British Standards); Ash v Chelsea and Westminster Hospital (clinical negligence claim by well-known actress); Mughweni v Guys and St Thomas Hospital (paediatric cardiac surgery). The toxic sofa litigation: the claims arising out of the terrorist bombing of the Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai. Colchester Borough Council v Turner + Townsend (representing project managers in dispute about construction of iconic visual arts centre).

1978 BA Hons; Exeter University (1979 LLM).