Legal Aid

The circumstances in which a client can apply for Legal Aid are now very limited. Only claims involving children suffering a neurological injury either prior to their birth, during their birth or within eight weeks of their birth are eligible.

Solicitors providing representation via Legal Aid are subject to strict rules. Sternberg Reed is able to act for clients in this capacity as we hold a Legal Aid Contract and have proven our ability to handle the most complex of cases.

If your case is funded by Legal Aid there will usually be no costs for you to pay.

No Win, No Fee

The majority of medical negligence cases are not eligible for Legal Aid and we offer “no win, no fee” agreements (Conditional Fee Agreements) as an alternative.

Under a “no win, no fee” agreement, as long as you comply with the terms of the contract, you will have nothing to pay in the event that you lose your case. We will write off our fees at no cost to you and third party expenses, such as court fees and those payable to medical experts for their advice, will be met through a policy of “after the event” insurance.

A system known as Qualified One Way Costs Shifting (QOCS) is now applicable in medical negligence cases which means, if you lose your case, you should not be responsible for your opponent’s costs.

In the event that your claim concludes successfully and you recover damages, we may take a proportion, not exceeding 25% plus VAT of your compensation, which will be agreed with you at the outset of your claim.

In addition, the “after the event” insurance policy, referred to above, is only payable upon successful conclusion of your claim. Part of this will be deducted from your compensation payment. However, the majority of this cost is recoverable from your opponent.

We pride ourselves on our ability to recover maximum damages for clients in medical negligence cases, so you can be assured that you will have achieved the best possible result when your claim concludes.

For further information please feel free to call our Medical Negligence team on 0844 800 9860. They will be happy to provide you with as much information as possible.