How long will a medical negligence claim for a child take

There is no simple answer to this question. Where the injury is severe and your child requires continuing assistance, the claim cannot be resolved until your child’s long-term prognosis is known. It may not be possible to do that until your child is at least eight or nine years of age.

A compensation claim can still be started to determine liability. Once this has been established, interim payments may be obtained from the other side to meet your child’s ongoing needs. We’ll need to access your child’s medical records and obtain medical evidence from independent experts initially to establish if there is a case to be answered but also to help determine your child’s long-term needs.

The claim may also take account of lost future earnings if the injury makes it unlikely your child could ever work and the cost of whatever help and support they may need, potentially for life. All this takes time, but is necessary to allow us to recover the maximum amount of damages to which your child is entitled.

How co-operative the other side chooses to be can also affect the time it takes to settle. Sometimes, they’ll accept Fletchers’ evidence and valuation or they may dispute it. We’ll then enter into negotiations in order to try and reach a satisfactory settlement or we may need to ask a judge in Court to decide. The length of time spent to resolve your case can vary.

We will always aim to resolve your case as quickly as possible, but it will take time to ensure we achieve the best possible outcome for you and your child.