May 15th, 2009
A boy who was attacked by a gang of youths on school premises is seeking compensation for the injuries he sustained.
Henry Webster, 18, was a pupil at Ridgeway School in Wroughton near Swindon in January 2007, the Telegraph reports.
He had an altercation with a 15-year-old boy and agreed to meet him on the tennis courts after school. However, when he met the boy, he was ambushed by a group of his friends.
The gang beat Mr Webster with claw hammers and he was left fighting for his life.
He is now suing the school for £1 million in damages, claiming that it had not done enough to prevent racial tensions from erupting.
At a high court hearing, Judge Hagen criticised the school, saying he was "astonishing" that staff had not been supervising pupils on the tennis courts when the bell went.
The school denies the allegations and another hearing is set for October.
Schools have a duty of care towards pupils and anyone injured while on school premises should seek advice from a personal injury lawyer, as they may be eligible for compensation.
Tags: 1 Million, Allegations, Altercation, Claw Hammers, Damages, Duty Of Care, Hagen, Hammer Attack, Henry Webster, High Court Hearing, Mr Webster, Personal Injury Lawyer, Pupil, Pupils, Racial Tensions, School Premises, Swindon, Telegraph Reports, Tennis Courts
Posted in Personal Injury News | No Comments »
February 24th, 2009
A 21-year-old man has been awarded compensation following a high court hearing after it was ruled that an NHS trust was responsible for the injuries he sustained during his birth.
Christopher James Langford was born at Sandwell Hospital in Tipton in 1987, local paper the Express and Star reports.
However, his mother began to suffer complications during the delivery. Although an obstetrician was called, he did not arrive and Christopher was starved of oxygen. He went on to develop cerebral palsy.
The court heard that had the doctor arrived when he was called, Christopher could have been delivered within nine minutes and that he would not have developed the disorder.
He will now receive a payout from the West Midlands Strategic Health Authority which is likely to run into millions of pounds in order to cover the costs of his long-term care.
A spokesperson for the trust said it "deeply regrets" Christopher’s injuries and it is now working towards a compensation settlement for him.
According to figures from Scope, one in 400 children born in he UK has cerebral palsy.
Tags: Brain Damage, Cerebral Palsy, Express And Star, High Court Hearing, James Langford, Led, Long Term Care, Nhs Trust, Obstetrician, Old Man, Oxygen, Scope, Spokesperson, Strategic Health Authority, Tipton, West Midlands
Posted in Clinical Negligence News | No Comments »
February 18th, 2009
A man who suffered permanent injuries after an accident at work is to receive £450,000 compensation after a high court hearing.
Michael John Brand, 46, was working for BOCM Pauls and Roy Allen (Engineering) in Bury St Edmunds in 2004, the Norfolk Eastern Daily Press reports.
He was on a warehouse roof clearing moss and debris when he slipped and fell five metres through a skylight.
Mt Brand landed on a concrete floor and suffered severe brain injuries, as well as a laceration to his liver, a fractured pelvis and a punctured lung.
The brain injury caused permanent personality changes and his is still living in a rehabilitation unit because he cannot live independently.
His legal representative said he pursued the claim "to highlight the importance of employers carrying out proper risk assessments and ensuring sufficient health and safety procedures are in place."
According to the Health and Safety Executive, the rate of major injury in construction is the highest of any main industry group at 599.2 per 100,000 workers.
Tags: Allen Engineering, Bocm Pauls, Brain Injuries, Brain Injury, Bury St Edmunds, Catastrophic Injuries, Concrete Floor, Eastern Daily Press, Fractured Pelvis, Health And Safety Executive, Health And Safety Procedures, High Court Hearing, Laceration, Legal Representative, Personality Changes, Proper Risk, Punctured Lung, Rehabilitation Unit, Risk Assessments, Roy Allen
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June 30th, 2008
A 12-year-old boy from Malta has won £4.25 million compensation after a UK hospital failed to diagnose an inherited disorder when he was a baby.
The condition went undetected for a further 12 months and, as a result, Luke Attard suffered brain damage, reports the Observer.
At a High Court hearing, Dr Gwilym Hosking was accused of failing to carry a routine blood test on Luke which would have identified a rare form of a genetic disorder phenylketonuria (PKU).
Specialist staff at Great Ormond Street Hospital eventually diagnosed the condition.
According to NHS Direct, PKU is a metabolic disorder which manifests itself in an enzyme defect rendering the sufferer unable to produce the essential amino acid tyrosine.
Dr Hosking died in October 2006. In May that year, Luke’s parents reached a settlement on the basis that Dr Hosking was 90 per cent liable.
Luke now lives with his family in East Sussex. Two of his three brothers also have PKU.
Tags: 12 Months, Amino Acid Tyrosine, Attard, Brain Damage, East Sussex, Enzyme Defect, Genetic Disorder, Great Ormond Street, Great Ormond Street Hospital, High Court Hearing, Hosking, Malta, Metabolic Disorder, Misdiagnosis, Pku, Routine Blood Test, Specialist Staff, Sufferer, Sussex
Posted in Clinical Negligence News | No Comments »
