Clinical Negligence

Funding Your Claim

Legal aid

Park Woodfine Heald Mellows are franchised by the Legal Services Commission to act in cases funded by legal aid.  If you have a very low income or are on benefits then you should qualify for legal aid.  It is possible to check your eligibility online at the Legal Services Commission.

Legal expenses insurance

We also act for clients who have the benefit of legal expenses insurance.  It is always worth checking your household insurance as quite often clients find they have purchased this without realising it. 

There are a number of things you need to consider.  Firstly, there is often a draconian time limit (6 months is quite common) for making a claim.  So request a claim form immediately if you do have legal expenses cover.

Second, the insurer will inevitably point you towards their panel solicitor unless you make a specific request about the solicitor you wish to choose.  The panel solicitor will inevitably be many miles away and although on an insurer panel may not actually be accredited , principally as the insurer tends to have driven a hard bargain in relation to fees as a pre-requisite to joining the panel.  If clients prefer our local connection and the fact that we are accredited , we prefer to complete the claims section of the claim form after the client has completed their personal details and signed it.  That allows us to put a stronger case for the client. 

For information about panel solicitors click here.

Private paying

We will act on a private fee paying basis.  We charge for out of pocket expenses (medical release fees, experts’ fees, etc) up front.  Our own charges are billed quarterly.

“No Win, No Fee”

We generally do not act for clients from the outset of their case on a “no win, no fee” basis.  All investigation work (i.e. establishing the facts (see step two of How to make a Claim), breach of duty (step 3), and causation (step 4) will be carried out on a private fee paying basis.  If the investigation is positive we will then sign you up to a “no win, no fee” agreement.

We will also consider transferring to a “no win, no fee” agreement if legal aid or legal expenses end for some reason.

“No win, no fee” is known as Conditional Fee Agreements or CFAs by solicitors.