Irwin Mitchell has long held a place as one of the top firms in this arena, with practice head Kristofer Inskip having over two decades of experience in bringing medical negligence actions on behalf of claimants. Lindsay Wise specialises in matters involving serious brain and spinal injuries, while Jennifer Cawthorne is known for her expertise in birth injury cases and claims resulting from the delayed diagnosis of cancer. Margaret Ryan, also a specialist in wrongful birth claims, was promoted to partner in May 2022. At the senior associate level, key names are Dina Lambourne, who has first-hand medical experience having been a cardiac nurse, and oral cancer and cauda equina expert Kevin Saul. Cases of delayed diagnosis are one of the firm’s main areas of strength.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘Understands needs of clients.’
‘They know the best ways of providing appropriate legal advice for the benefit of the client.’
‘The Manchester clinical negligence team at Irwin Mitchell is the stand out department in the North West.’
‘Kristofer Inskip leads the team applying the highest of standards and giving real encouragement. His individual case load is handled with meticulous care.’
‘Irwin Mitchell have a deserved national reputation. The solicitors I work with are dedicated and extremely able, with a well-resourced team behind them.’
‘Jennifer Cawthorne and Kevin Saul: these practitioners are sharp and creative in their litigation, always promoting the client's interest.’
‘The practitioners have outstanding experience in complex clinical negligence cases. There are fee earners with particular expertise. This means that clients get a solicitor with real experience of dealing with similar cases which is often invaluable in identifying the stand out experts etc.’
‘They have expertise in so many different types of clinical negligence. It is so important that a solicitor has dealt with similar cases.'

Work highlights

Represented a claimant in a claim relating to failure/delay in diagnosis of neurosarcoidosis.
Acted for a claimant in relation to a delay in diagnosis of a brain tumour, due to negligent reporting of a CT head scan.
Succeeded with a claim that involved negligent brain tumour surgery, where healthy tissue was removed instead of the tumour.

Lawyers

Rising stars

Dina Lambourne

Irwin Mitchell

I am a Senior Associate in the Medical Negligence department in Irwin Mitchell’s Manchester office. I specialise in birth injury, brain injury, spinal, cardiac and renal claims. As a former nurse and Sister on an Intensive Care Unit, I am able to use the medical knowledge gained during my years of nursing to the benefit of my clients. Every client has individual needs and their wishes are at the forefront of my mind when progressing their claim. I am committed throughout the life of the claim to achieving the best possible outcome for my clients.

Kevin Saul

Irwin Mitchell

Senior Associate Solicitor

Leading individuals

Jennifer Cawthorne

Irwin Mitchell

I have worked at Irwin Mitchell for over 22 years and have been a Partner for 13 years. I have worked in Manchester since 2010 having previously worked at the firms Newcastle and Sheffield offices. I have specialised in claims relating to negligent medical treatment since qualifying in April 2001. For over 13 years I have been a member of both the Law Society Clinical Negligence Accreditation Scheme and an accredited Senior Litigator with the Association of Personal Injuries Lawyers (APIL). During my career I have recovered millions of pounds in compensation for clients often dealing with multi million pound cases. I have been involved in high profile cases such as the indexation cases. I have a particular interest in cases relating to child and adult brain injury, spinal injuries and delayed diagnosis of cancer cases.