LIMITATION - MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE UK

The Limitation Act 1980

Claims for compensation for personal injury caused by medical negligence (UK) are subject to the provisions contained in The Limitation Act 1980. Whilst in general terms the ‘limitation period’ for most damages claims is six years, in the case of personal injury claims the period is reduced to three years. The term ‘limitation period’ refers to the time within which it is possible to pursue a legal claim for compensation. There are exceptions to the general three year rule, which are outlined below, however if the period is exceeded then the opportunity to claim compensation may have been lost forever. These cases take a considerable amount of investigation prior to the issue of a full certificate of legal aid and potential claimants should ensure that they take legal advice at least 6 months ad preferably 12 months before the expiry of the limitation period. In addition most solicitors will not accept a case using the no win no fee scheme unless they have thoroughly investigated the matter in advance of taking formal legal action.

Reckoning The 3 Year Period

The starting date for reckoning the three year limitation period for medical negligence (UK) is the earliest date upon which the potential claimant first had the knowledge, which he might reasonably have been expected to acquire, necessary to bring a legal action. The claimant must therefore have known the material facts, have known that the injury caused by the alleged clinical negligence was serious enough to justify the issue of legal proceedings and must have known the identity of the potential parties to the action, before the three year period starts running. This effectively means that the three year period does not start to run until the injured person finds out about the problem and the parties involved which can in some cases be many years after the medical treatment.

Exceptions To The 3 Year Rule

There are a number of exceptions to the general three year rule which can stop or delay time running for medical negligence (UK) under the limitation period. In addition the court has a wide discretion, which it rarely exercises, to extend the limitation period. Reliance on the courts discretion is a high risk strategy and if the limitation period has expired then the court will only allow the issue of legal proceedings in very exceptional cases. The main exceptions to the general three year rule includes:-

• The three year period does not start to run for children and young adults until they reach the age of 18 years. This means that the period expires on the eve of the 21st birthday.
• People who suffer from mental incapacity may be able to issue proceedings at any time, as in severe cases, the three year period may never start to run. The limitation period may however start to run if mental capacity returns.

Specialist Solicitors

We represent a network of specialist lawyers operating throughout the United Kingdom. In England and Wales our solicitors are all members of the Law Society clinical negligence panel and are franchised to make an application for legal aid. Less than 1% of UK solicitors are clinical negligence specialists. If you would like to talk to an expert lawyer just complete the contact form and a solicitor will phone you to give free advice without any further obligation whatsoever.