header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
03 May 2024 / Dominic Regan
Issue: 8069 / Categories: Features , Personal injury , Damages , In Court
printer mail-detail

Personal injury: trying it on

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.
169535
Personal injury claimants are well warned about dishonesty. Sadly, some don’t listen. Dominic Regan examines a wise judgment from a recent case
  • An examination of Williams-Henry v Associated British Ports Holdings Ltd [2024], in which Mr Justice Ritchie found ‘breathtaking’ dishonesty.

Very nearly £600,000. That is the amount of damages a claimant would have received had she not been fundamentally dishonest. In the event, she lost every penny. The magisterial judgment of Mr Justice Ritchie in Williams-Henry (by her mother and litigation friend Christel Williams) v Associated British Ports Holdings Ltd [2024] EWHC 806 (KB), [2024] All ER (D) 44 (Apr) is required reading for anyone involved in personal injury claims. Lawyers, doctors and others such as care experts will learn so much.

The claimant was genuine insofar as she was the victim of an accident, having suffered a moderately severe brain injury from a nasty fall off Aberavon Pier. Liability was settled at two-thirds in her favour. Sadly, she was ‘breathtakingly dishonest’, a description of part of her evidence

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
WSP Solicitors—David Ashcroft & Jessica O’Shea

WSP Solicitors—David Ashcroft & Jessica O’Shea

Commercial property and child law teams expand with senior hires

Duxton Hill Chambers—Lucas Bastin KC & Joshua Hiew

Duxton Hill Chambers—Lucas Bastin KC & Joshua Hiew

Set expands London and Singapore offering with senior international disputes hires

Gilson Gray—Gregor Duthie & Stephen Forsyth

Gilson Gray—Gregor Duthie & Stephen Forsyth

Firm strengthens real estate and litigation teams with partner promotions

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Uber’s legal shield faces scrutiny on both sides of the Atlantic
Uber has built a formidable strategy for insulating itself from liability for drivers’ conduct, but the legal terrain differs sharply between the US and England and Wales
NLJ this week: Is it finally time to scrap Part III?
The Civil Justice Council’s review of Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974 could mark the end of what one commentator calls an ‘outdated’ and overly technical regime governing solicitor-client fee disputes
NLJ this week: Hereditary peers era finally comes to an end
The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026 marks a constitutional watershed by severing the centuries-old link between hereditary titles and automatic membership of the upper chamber
NLJ this week: Courts tighten scrutiny of AI and public power
Artificial intelligence, proportionality and public decision-making are under increasing judicial scrutiny, according to the latest public law round-up from Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
NLJ this week: Why handshake property deals rarely survive court
Families relying on informal agreements over property ownership could face costly consequences if disputes arise, the High Court has warned
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll