Spinal Injury Sustained During Routine Surgery

This case study highlights how we represented a client who suffered life-changing spinal injuries following routine surgery, resulting in paraplegia. The claim was highly complex, with the Defendant NHS Trust strongly disputing liability throughout. Through persistent legal strategy, extensive expert evidence, and skilled negotiation, we successfully secured a multi-million pound settlement to support our client’s long-term care and needs.

What this case study covers: 

• A routine spinal procedure leading to catastrophic injury
• The immediate medical complications and emergency follow-up surgery
• A strongly defended claim with liability denied throughout
• Challenges in dealing with the Defendant NHS Trust
• The role of expert medical evidence in establishing liability
• Resolution of liability through mediation shortly before trial
• Securing substantial interim payments to support the client
• Ongoing disputes regarding the value of the claim
• The importance of specialist legal expertise in complex clinical negligence cases
• Final negotiations leading to a multi-million pound settlement
• Ensuring long-term financial support for the client’s care and future needs

Case background

In this case, our client attended hospital for routine spinal surgery to replace a disc in their spine.

After the first operation, they were initially rendered tetraplegic. Urgent follow up surgery was undertaken to attempt to revise the initial surgery but with only limited success. Our client was permanently rendered paraplegic.

Liability negotiations

This proved to be a very challenging case in which the Defendant NHS Trust made no concessions at any point with regard to whether they were at fault for the outcome. They were also resistant to engaging in the case in any meaningful or constructive manner.

Despite this intransigent approach, extensive expert evidence was obtained for our client and we continued to fight her case.

The issue of liability (i.e. to determine if the Defendant NHS Trust was at fault) was ultimately resolved favourably at a formal mediation, only a few weeks before a trial on the issue of liability.

Thereafter, substantial interim damages were secured for our client and the case proceeded again until just a few weeks before another trial to determine the value of our client’s case, before a resolution was obtained at a settlement meeting between the parties.

Why we were one of a select handful of firms uniquely able to handle the matter

With liability and the overall value of the case being contested throughout the entirety of the case, it was vital that the our client had instructed a firm with significant experience in handling cases of such complexity and with access to a range of specialist experts who could provide the necessary evidence.

The file handler, Chris Lecky, had first hand experience in successfully resolving another case involving almost identical injuries arising from the same type of surgery and, this knowledge was key to understanding the complexities of the liability issues, communicating effectively with the experts involved and arguing the client’s case to a successful conclusion.

The settlement

The parties engaged in a full day of negotiations at a settlement meeting, arranged just 8 weeks before the commencement of a 10-day trial.

The settlement meeting ultimately failed on the day but, with reliance and skilled further negotiations, a successful settlement was reached securing our client a multi-million pound figure to fund her future care and additional needs arising from her injuries.

If you or someone you know has sustained a serious injury and would like to speak to a specialist, please contact us today.