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Spinal Cord Injury
We have extensive experience in dealing with spinal cord injury cases. We acted for the Claimant in the case of Biesheuvel v Birrell (1999) P.I.Q.R Q68. Martin Biesheuvel was a Dutch Student, who was injured in a road traffic accident in the UK. His injuries rendered him tetraplegic. He was awarded £9.3 million, the highest award of damages in a personal injury case in the English Courts.
Almost every aspect of the claim was contested by the Defendants, however the Judge dismissed many of their arguments, finding in the Claimant's favour on the major issues in the case. Further details of the Biesheuvel v Birrell case can be found on the BBC News website and other commentary.
We have a track record of achieving results for our clients in disputed liability and high value spinal injury claims.
In the case of Owen v Brown (2002) EWHC 1135 (QB) the Claimant was involved in a motorcycle accident. He sustained severe multiple injuries namely T6 complete sensory and motor paraplegia, extensive damage to his left limb leaving him with complete paralysis and loss of sensation in his left arm. He was deemed to be triplegic because he had lost the use of three of his limbs. The Claimant was awarded £3.9 million in damages.
We recently acted for Stuart Parry, the Claimant, in the case of Parry v Humbert before HHJ Oliver-Jones QC in the High Court of Justice (QB) January 2005. Stuart was involved in a motorcycle accident, which left him paraplegic and suffering from severe brain damage. He was awarded damages in the sum of £3.6 million.
One of the major issues which was hard fought by the Defendants in both of these cases was the cost of the Claimants current care packages.
It is imperative that an individual has the right care package for them. We have seen that this really empowers our clients and ensures that they can decide how to live their lives.
One of our principal aims is to obtain an interim payment wherever possible at the earliest stage in a case to ensure that clients receive monies to implement care and support packages which will give them back the independence that was lost after the accident.
In the cases of Parry and Owen the Claimants were awarded the full amount of compensation to meet the cost of employing Personal Assistants for the rest of their lives.
The case was used as a case study when we gave a presentation to members of AVMA entitled "Maximising Compensation In Spinal Injury Claims".
We are passionate about providing the active support that our clients need to move forward after spinal injury.
We have developed close links with Back Up. This is a charity whose aim is to assist those suffering from spinal cord injury to get "back in to action" and to continue with their lives and resume pre accident hobbies and interests wherever possible. The head of the Personal Injury Department, Kent Pattinson, ran the 2005 London Marathon to raise funds for Back Up.
Personal Injury &
Clinical Negligence
