How to Choose Your Clinical Negligence Solicitor

If you’ve suffered clinical negligence as a result of an operation that went wrong, or due to the wrong medication, or a misdiagnosis, then you might be entitled to compensation.

Here’s what you need to think about if you need a clinical negligence solicitor.

1. You’ll need to establish what sort of clinical negligence you have suffered. Misdiagnosis of a disease or a broken bone, is different to leaving a surgical tool inside a person, or you needed additional surgery or medical treatment after being seen by a healthcare professional.

2. It’s important that you decide whether a local solicitor or specialised clinical negligence solicitor will be best for you. There are pros and cons for each, and ultimately you’ll need to decide which is best for you. A local solicitor will be easier to contact, and can be seen face to face, and might know more about the hospital or the treatment or circumstances. A specialised solicitor might only deal in clinical negligence cases, and be more knowledgeable about the sort of treatment, or the right legal process to follow in order to claim compensation.

3. A personal accident or compensation claims company might be able to get you compensation, but you might not get the full amount, and you might not get the dedicated personal service that you really need at this delicate time.

4. You’ll want to choose a solicitor that deals with medical cases who has a good reputation. If you choose a local solicitor, they might not be able to give you the same service as a dedicated medical solicitor. It might be that a specialised solicitor deals with so many cases that not all of them are successful.

5. Knowing what sort of results your solicitor get, and the results for your sort of clinical negligence, will help to reassure that you’ve chosen the right one. You’ll have gone through a lot, and don’t want to run the risk that your case won’t be successful.

6. As you’re likely to be dealing with personal and very sensitive information, it’s essential that you get on with your solicitor. If your solicitor seems vacant, or doesn’t seem to be listening, or is preoccupied, then they might not be taking your case as seriously as you’d like.

7. You’ll want your solicitor to display empathy towards you, and understand what you’ve been through, or what you’re going through. Perhaps you’re in permanent pain due to a medical procedure that went wrong. Maybe you’ve suffered permanent facial disfigurement after dental work, or maybe you’ve needed an amputation because a condition wasn’t found soon enough.

8. Your solicitor will need to communicate well with you, and keep you up to date with what’s going on, what to expect, and what you can do to help your cause. You won’t want to have to keep ringing up or visiting your solicitor in order to find out what they’re doing for you.

9. As well as communicating well with you, you’ll want your solicitors to act in a timely manner, so that you can get the compensation you deserve for the injuries and pain you’ve suffered, as soon as possible. You might need to make adaptations to your home to accommodate a wheelchair, or need to give up work, or learn how to walk again.

10. It’s essential that you choose the right solicitor based on their experience, results and whether you like them. Choosing on cost alone might mean that you get a poor service, little communication and empathy, and don’t get all the compensation you’re entitled to.

Now you know what to look for, you’ll be able to choose the right clinical negligence solicitor.