Bolam, Bolitho and Informed Consent

Bolam, Bolitho and Informed Consent Dominic Ruck Keene McCulloch and Others v Forth Valley Health Board [2023] UKSC 26 The Supreme Court has given an authoritative re-statement of the application of the ‘Professional Practice Test’ or ‘Bolam’ test in the context of informed consent.  This was a Scottish case, but…

An end to the Plus of Galbraith in Inquests?

R (Police Officer B50) v HM Coroner for East Yorkshire and Kingston Upon Hull [2023] EWHC 81 (Admin) The Divisional Court (Stuart-Smith LJ and Fordham J) considered a challenge to a Coroner’s application of the Galbraith test as to what conclusions can safely be left to a jury in an…

Discharge of Patients into Care Homes and Covid-19

R (Gardner) v Secretary of State for Health [2022] EWHC 967 (Admin) The High Court (Bean LJ and Garnham J) held in R (Gardner) v Secretary of State for Health [2022] EWHC 967 (Admin) that the Government’s March 2020 Discharge Policy and the April 2020 Admissions Guidance were unlawful to…

Article 2 Systemic Duty and a teenager under Community Mental Health Services

R (Patton) v HM Assistant Coroner for Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire [2022] EWHC 1377 (Admin) Mrs Justice Hill quashed a ruling that the Article 2 general (or systemic) duty had not been potentially engaged by the death of Kianna Patton. The facts Kianna had been found hanging aged 16 at a…

Article 2 and a Child Under a Care Order

R (Boyce) v HM Senior Coroner for Teeside and Hartlepool [2022] EWHC 107 (Admin) Mrs Justice Belcher upheld the Coroner’s decision that Article 2 was not engaged by the death of a 15 year old girl (Grace Peers) who died while in the care of Middlesborough Borough Council, who had placed…

Vicarious and Direct Liability for Horseplay

Chell v Tarmac Cement and Lime Limited [2022] EWCA Civ 7 The Facts The Claimant was employed as a site fitter for Roltech Engineering Ltd who contracted his services out to Tarmac Cement and Lime Ltd. Tensions arose with Tarmac’s own fitters and the Claimant spoke to his supervisor about…

The Boundaries of Vicarious Liability for Historic Child Abuse Explored Once Again

Blackpool Football Club v DSN [2021] EWCA Civ 1352 The facts The Court of Appeal considered an appeal against a finding that a football club was liable for the sexual abuse inflicted on a 13-year-old youth player in 1987 by a volunteer scout (Mr Roper) during a tour of New…

Limitation

Wilkins v University Hospital North Midlands NHS Trust [2021] EWHC 261 (QB). Aderounmu v Colvin [2021 EWHC 2293 (QB) The Facts – Wilkins Deputy High Court Judge Hermer QC determined as a preliminary issue whether the claim against the Defendant Hospital for negligently failing to treat a significant post-knee replacement…

High Court Rejects ‘Failure to Remove’ Abuse Claim

DFX v Coventry City Council [2021] EWHC 1382 (QB) In a significant adverse judgment for child abuse claimants, Mrs Justice Lambert rejected a claim brought by a number of Claimants who alleged that the Defendant council’s social services negligently delayed in instigating care proceedings and that, had they been removed…

Advice and Aortic Valves

Negus v Guy’s and St Thomas’s NHS Foundation Trust [2021] EWHC 643 (QB) The facts The claim was brought by the executors on behalf of the estate of Mrs Tracy Neill. On 4 March 2014 the Deceased underwent the implantation of a 19mm mechanical aortic valve. The Claimants alleged that…