£9 million settlement for 8-year-old girl with cerebral palsy

The client was born in 2014. During her mother’s first pregnancy in 2011, her elder sister’s birth had involved substantial blood loss and an emergency caesarean section.

When the client’s mother attended the same hospital for antenatal care, doctors didn’t properly discuss her delivery options. They also failed to take account of the complications during her elder sister’s birth.

During labour, the client’s mother suffered a placental abruption, a serious complication in which the placenta separates from the wall of the womb. The client was delivered by emergency caesarean section in very poor condition. After resuscitation, she was transferred to another hospital for therapeutic cooling.

Sadly, the client developed cerebral palsy following her birth. Her condition has had a significant, lasting impact on her life.

The source case study explains that the client will never be able to live independently. She’ll need lifelong care and therapies, and her life expectancy is significantly reduced.

These needs made it essential to understand the long-term support the client would require and to secure compensation that reflected the impact of her injuries throughout her life.

The client’s cerebral palsy means she’ll need ongoing care and therapeutic support throughout her life. Her family also needed to consider suitable accommodation that could better meet her needs.

The uncertainty surrounding the claim added another challenge for the family as they worked to secure the support their daughter would need in the future.

An interim payment during the legal process helped the family move into better temporary accommodation while the team on the case continued to assess the full value of the claim.

The client’s family instructed the team on the case in 2017. They obtained the medical records and gathered expert evidence to investigate what had happened during pregnancy and birth.

In 2019, the team sent the hospital a formal letter setting out the allegations of negligence. The claim argued that if the client’s mother had received proper advice about the risks and benefits of vaginal birth compared with a planned caesarean, she would have chosen the caesarean.

The hospital initially denied responsibility. However, in 2020, its lawyers invited the family and the team on the case to a meeting to discuss whether responsibility could be resolved without starting court proceedings.

Following that meeting, the hospital accepted 80% liability for the client’s injuries. This meant the hospital accepted responsibility for the majority of the claim, allowing the team to obtain an interim payment while they worked to establish the full compensation needed for the client’s future.

The team on the case instructed experts to assess the client’s future care needs. These included specialists in care, occupational therapy and accommodation.

The evidence helped the parties work towards a settlement at a further meeting in autumn 2022. The case settled shortly afterwards, with a lump sum and regular payments for the rest of the client’s life. Together, these payments equated to a capitalised settlement of just over £9 million.

The compensation will help fund the client’s lifelong care and therapies. It will also help her family provide suitable accommodation and support for her ongoing needs.

What the client’s father said

“I would like to thank you Sarah for being amazing throughout the process and for your determination to ensure that our daughter receives her rightful damages due to her. Your tireless support, contribution, determination, and patient is truly appreciated, and we are most grateful. I will like to thank everyone who worked or contributed in many ways to make this a success”

Client’s father

Sarah Stanton, the medical negligence partner who represented the client, said:

“We are so pleased that we were able to bring this case to a successful conclusion for our client and her family. While no amount of damages can change the situation, it will enable this family to have a much better quality of life in the future.”

When a child develops cerebral palsy following complications around birth, families may face difficult questions about what happened and what support their child will need throughout life.

A medical negligence claim can involve complex medical evidence and careful assessment of future care needs. The team on the case must understand how the injury affects the child and family to establish the compensation needed for the future.

Fletchers supports families affected by birth injuries, helping them understand their options and navigate the legal process.

Find out more about our birth injury claims service.

Contact us today to speak to our team.