header-logo header-logo

10 December 2021
Issue: 7960 / Categories: Case law , In Court , Law digest
printer mail-detail

Law digests: 10 December 2021

Clinical negligence

HTR (acting by his mother and next friend) v Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust [2021] EWHC 3228 (QB), [2021] All ER (D) 03 (Dec)

The Queen’s Bench Division ruled that breach of duty had been established, concerning the claimant’s clinical negligence claim. Four days after an antenatal appointment with Dr S at the defendant’s hospital in 2004 (the relevant date), the claimant had been delivered by emergency Caesarean section, having suffered permanent damage from chronic partial hypoxia which had resulted in asymmetric quadriplegic cerebral palsy. The court held that, as the claimant’s mother (LJR) had raised a concern about reduced foetal movement at the clinic on the relevant date, she had established a breach of duty. Further, in circumstances where the hearing in the present case had taken place 17 years to the day after the events in issue, and where LJR had first prepared a statement eight years after the meeting with Dr S, the court held that, notwithstanding that the critical medical note had recorded active foetal movement,

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

Winckworth Sherwood—Rubianka Winspear

Winckworth Sherwood—Rubianka Winspear

Real estate and construction energy offering boosted by partner hire

Gateley Legal—Daniel Walsh

Gateley Legal—Daniel Walsh

Firm bolsters real estate team with partner hire in Birmingham

Shakespeare Martineau—Serena Eddy

Shakespeare Martineau—Serena Eddy

London restructuring team strengthened by legal director appointment

NEWS
A wave of housing and procedural reforms is set to test the limits of tribunal capacity. In his latest Civil Way column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold charts sweeping change as the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 begins biting
Plans to reduce jury trials risk missing the real problem in the criminal justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, David Wolchover of Ridgeway Chambers argues the crown court backlog is fuelled not by juries but weak cases slipping through a flawed ‘50%’ prosecution test
Emerging technologies may soon transform how courts determine truth in deeply personal disputes. In this week's NLJ, Madhavi Kabra of 1 Hare Court and Harry Lambert of Outer Temple Chambers explore how neurotechnology could reshape family law
A controversial protest case has reignited debate over the limits of free expression. In NLJ this week, Nicholas Dobson examines a Quran-burning incident testing public order law
The courts have drawn a firm line under attempts to extend arbitration appeals. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed of the University of Leicester highlights that if the High Court refuses permission under s 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996, that is the end
back-to-top-scroll