Clinical negligence: claimant

Fieldfisher

Iona Meeres-Young heads up the team at Fieldfisher, which is noted for its ‘excellent service from the very start of a litigation journey all the way until the end’. In addition to representing claimants in various maternal and birth injury cases, the team is well versed in psychiatric claims, involving psychosis and self-harm, along with other medical issues, such as gastrointestinal, amputation and cancer misdiagnosis litigation. Samantha Critchley and Paul McNeil are both key ports of call for catastrophic birth injuries, holding over 20 years of experience in medical negligence claims involving children's brain injuries, along with traumatic deliveries and neurosurgery. Mark Bowman - ’extremely knowledgeable, dedicated and professional’ - handles claims requiring expertise in surgical errors, delays in diagnosis and amputations. Jane Weakley is especially active in obstetrics litigation, while Jonathan Zimmern regularly advises on cancer, orthopedic and delayed diagnosis disputes. Kate Rohde deals with spinal injuries along with birth negligence, while Ian Christian advises on neonatal and multiparty claims. Other key figures include Arti Shah and Shivi Nathan, both of whom specialise in obstetric cases, along with cancer, stillbirth and neurological negligence litigation.

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Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘Mark Bowman - extremely knowledgeable, dedicated and professional. Outstanding individual.'
‘Everyone at Fieldfisher has been professional, courteous and efficient.’
‘Samantha Critchley is an absolute stand out. She worked on our case for 9 years and achieved an exceptional outcome that means my son will have everything he needs and be cared for for the rest of his life.’
‘Jane Weakley anticipated worries and concerns I might have and was consistently reassuring.’
‘The team were knowledgable, personable, compassionate. They provided an excellent service from the very start of our litigation journey all the way until the end.’
‘Kate and the team offer a personal approach. They always have time to address our concerns, regardless of how big or small they are. They work tirelessly in the background & always respond to our correspondence in a very timely manner.'
‘Fieldfisher staff at all levels were knowledgeable and courteous over more than five years, both to me and my contacts that provided witness statements. There is a clear ethos of outstanding professionalism and kindness.'
‘Samantha Critchley was dedicated to my legal case for over five years, indefatigable and empathetic throughout. Samantha is extremely professional, highly knowledgeable in the law and is clearly respected by counsel and medical experts.’

Work highlights

Acted for child clients born with Down's Syndrome following a failure to identify significant defects. Liability was resolved and a significant interim payment secured for care, case management, suitable accommodation and much needed therapy. Quantum investigations are ongoing to establish the lifelong needs of the twins.
Won at the Court of Appeal when the appeal judges overturned an earlier decision that the catastrophic injuries of a baby girl would not have been affected had an obstetric consultant intervened one minute earlier. Saving one minute of duration of PHI would lowered the level of primary injury that would have been suffered by the baby. Negotiated a seven-figure financial settlement, approved in the High Court in December 2023.
Acted in a case where client acquired a severe injury to his brain when he was only 28 weeks old as a result of a failure to treat neonatal sepsis. Judgment for ABA in January 2021 at 85% liability. The case proceeded towards trial in 2023. The case settled for in excess of £23m.

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