header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us

Compensation battles

© Copyright LexisNexis 2025. All Rights Reserved.
08 April 2016 / Sir Geoffrey Bindman KC
Issue: 7693 / Categories: Opinion
printer mail-detail
istock_000003527863_web

Non-combatant victims of injuries by British soldiers must be able to seek compensation, says Geoffrey Bindman QC

The prime minister has pledged to work to end what he calls “hounding” of service personnel by claimant lawyers. Michael Gove has echoed this promise by telling us he will include suitable provisions in his projected “Bill of Rights”. Claimant lawyers are already subject to the disciplinary codes of the profession and the arraignment of two firms before the Solicitors’ Disciplinary TribunaI for alleged breaches of that code in relation to alleged ill-treatment of Iraqi citizens has prompted the prime minister’s intervention.

Importance of compensation

We must take seriously any threat to restrict the legal liability of those who cause harm to others to compensate their victims for the consequences of their acts or omissions. Redress for the injured victims of wrongdoing, whether deliberate or negligent is an honourable and important function of our legal system. Compensation provides a measure of justice for the injured. But it has been achieved only through long years of struggle. It must

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All
Sponsored by
DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: DNA evidence—justice on ice?
In this week's NLJ, Steven Ball of Red Lion Chambers unpacks how advances in forensic science finally unmasked Ryland Headley, jailed in 2025 for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. Preserved swabs and palm prints lay dormant for decades until DNA-17 profiling produced a billion-to-one match
NLJ this week: Fraud claims climb as courts brace for AI threats
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
NLJ this week: Pro bono power without the red tape
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
NLJ this week: Trans pool player loses discrimination fight
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve reports on Haynes v Thomson, the first judicial application of the Supreme Court’s For Women Scotland ruling in a discrimination claim, in this week's NLJ
NLJ this week: Traders’ convictions quashed in Libor shock
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll