header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
22 September 2023 / Simon Berney-Edwards
Issue: 8041 / Categories: Features , Profession
printer mail-detail

Due diligence & expert opinions

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.
138384
Simon Berney-Edwards underlines the importance of providing experts with all the evidence they need to ensure their opinions pass muster
  • Those instructing care experts must ensure that they have been provided with all the necessary evidence to ensure that they can fully address the issues, and that their opinions are fully justified and tested against the realities of life.

The recent judgment by Mr Justice Cotter in the case of Scarcliffe v Brampton Valley Group Ltd [2023] EWHC 1565 (KB) provides important direction and lessons to be learned for expert witnesses and those instructing them.

This claim arose out of an accident in 2017 in which Mr Scarcliffe, a tree surgeon, suffered two spinal fractures when a colleague lost control of a solid section of tree trunk, and it fell on him. Judgment had been found in favour of Mr Scarcliffe, and the proceedings in question were therefore specifically to assess damages. The claim detailed significant requirements going forward as two of his five children are disabled. The original claim was

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
Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Firm awards training contracts to paralegals through internal programme

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Private client disputes specialist joins commercial litigation team

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Cumbria firm appoints new head of residential property

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Divorce ‘nuclear weapon’ freezes assets but entangles outsiders
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
NLJ this week: What counts as ‘rent’? Court says labour alone won’t do
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
NLJ this week: Freed but failed—justice system leaves the innocent empty-handed
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
NLJ this week: Clarity on whistleblowing, settlements and tribunal limits
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
NLJ this week: Family law urged to ditch adversarial instincts
Family law must shift from conflict-driven litigation to child-centred problem-solving, according to a major new report. Writing in NLJ this week, Caroline Bowden of Anthony Gold outlines findings showing overwhelming support for reform, with 92% agreeing lawyers owe duties to children as well as clients
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll