Product liability

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Qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS)

What is QOCS?Qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) was introduced on 1 April 2013 as part of the Jackson costs reforms following the removal of a...

Pain, suffering and loss of amenity

Valuing the lossHow should an injury be measured in a sum of money? After all no formula can calculate the value of the loss of an arm or of the sense...

What is fundamental dishonesty?

This Practice Note considers fundamental dishonesty both in the context of section 57 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 (CJCA 2015) and the...

Psychiatric injury—secondary victims

What is a secondary victim?A primary victim is a claimant who was directly involved as a participant in the incident that caused their psychiatric...

Practice notes

Psychiatric injury—primary victims

Defining the primary victimA primary victim is a claimant who was directly involved as a participant in the incident that caused their psychiatric...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Smith v Manchester awards

The nature of the awardWhere an injured person is disadvantaged in the labour market as a result of a residual disability resulting from an injury,...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Provisional damages

Background and frameworkPurpose of a provisional damages awardWhen the court makes a once and for all lump sum award, it is designed to cover both...

Produced in partnership with Andrew Wilson 9th Nov

Practice notes

Collateral benefits and double recovery

General principlesAs a general rule, a claimant must give credit for any financial gains they make that they have received as a result of their...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Was the damage foreseeable?

The concept of foreseeability and remotenessEven if the claimant proves:•that the defendant acted negligently (ie in breach of duty), and•that the...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Catastrophic injury claims—heads of claim

NOTE: On 15 July 2019 the Lord Chancellor announced that the discount rate would change to minus 0.25%. The new discount rate came into effect on 5...

Produced in partnership with Andrew Wilson 9th Nov

Practice notes

Motor insurance

Brexit: The UK's departure from the EU on exit day, ie 31 January 2020, has implications for practitioners considering road traffic accidents. For...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS)—case tracker

This case tracker considers case law in relation to qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) in order to provide some guidance on how the courts are...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Low Velocity Impact RTAs—in detail

IntroductionOver the past decade or so, motor insurers have adopted and developed a strategy for identifying and dealing with road accident personal...

Produced in partnership with Andrew Wilson 9th Nov

Practice notes

Claims under the Consumer Protection Act 1987

Brexit: As of exit day (11 pm on 31 January 2020), the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Misfeasance in public office

The tort of misfeasanceMisfeasance in public office is a tort that is rarely invoked in personal injury claims. It is only available against public...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Part 36 offers in PI and clinical negligence claims

Note: This Practice Note is relevant only to Part 36 offers as considered under CPR 36 in force as from 6 April 2015. For offers made prior to this,...

Produced in partnership with Andrew Wilson 9th Nov

Practice notes

Applying for an interim payment order in personal injury claims

Timing and procedureA claimant can apply for an interim payment order after the end of the period for filing an acknowledgment of service.See Practice...

Produced in partnership with Andrew Wilson 9th Nov

Practice notes

Drafting counter schedules of loss in PI and clinical negligence claims

NOTE: On 15 July 2019 the Lord Chancellor announced that the discount rate would change to minus 0.25%. The new discount rate came into effect on 5...

Produced in partnership with Louise Thomson 9th Nov

Practice notes

The court’s power to extend the time limit—section 33 of the Limitation Act 1980

The Limitation Act 1980 is referred to as LA 1980.The power to disapply the primary limitation periodWhen dealing with personal injury claims that...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Claims for lost years

The claim and basis for itThis type of claim is made on behalf of a living claimant whose life expectancy has been reduced as a result of the...

9th Nov

Most recent Product liability content

Practice notes

Claims in contract for product liability cases

OverviewA defective product claim based on a breach of contract can be more straightforward than a claim brought in negligence. This is because the...

25th Nov

Practice notes

Getting the Deal Through: Product Liability 2019

Jurisdictions coveredThe following jurisdictions are covered in this report:Australia; England & Wales; France; India; Ireland; Italy; Japan; Korea;...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Getting the Deal Through: Product Recall 2021

Jurisdictions coveredThe following jurisdictions are covered in this report:Australia; Denmark; France; Greece; Ireland; Japan; Mexico; South...

9th Nov

Practice notes

General Product Safety Regulations 2005

BREXIT: As of exit day (31 January 2020), the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK has...

9th Nov

Practice notes

Group Litigation Orders—procedure

Who may apply for a group litigation order and when?It is worth noting that, subject to obtaining the appropriate consent (on which see: Application...

Produced in partnership with Andrew Wilson 13th Oct

Precedents

Particulars of claim for defective hip replacement

Claim No: [Insert]In the High Court of JusticeQueen’s Bench DivisionBetween[insert name] Claimantsand[insert...

Produced in partnership with Conor Dufficy of 7 Bedford Row 5th Oct

Q&As

Should claims arising from defective products be submitted through the claims portal?

There are two pre-action protocols which require claims within their scope to be submitted via the claims portal. These are the pre-action protocol...

Produced in partnership with Christi Scarborough of 42 Bedford Row 28th Sep

Q&As

Is a claim for a defective medical implant run under the Pre-Action Protocol for the Resolution of Clinical Disputes and therefore a clinical negligence claim for the purposes of recovering part of the insurance premium from the defendant?

The pre-action protocol for the resolution of clinical disputes applies to all claims against hospitals, GPs, dentists and other healthcare providers...

28th Sep

Precedents

Letter of claim—product liability claim against drinks manufacturer by third party

[ON THE HEADED NOTEPAPER OF CLAIMANT’S SOLICITORS]FAO [RELEVANT NAME][NAME OF DEFENDANT OR DEFENDANT’S SOLICITOR, IF KNOWN][ADDRESS LINE 1][ADDRESS...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Claims for implanted medical devices

Brexit: As of exit day (11 pm on 31 January 2020), the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Defective products

Brexit: As of exit day (11pm on 31 January 2020) the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Group Litigation Orders—introduction

What is a group litigation order?Multiple claims can be managed by the court under a group litigation order (GLO). GLOs may be made, before or after...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Consumer protection for defective or dangerous products—legal bases

Brexit: As of exit day (11pm on 31 January 2020) the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK...

26th Sep

Practice notes

Product liability—claims in negligence

The duty of careThe general principles of negligence apply, namely that the claimant has to establish that the defendant owed them a duty to take...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Group Litigation Orders—costs and qualified one-way costs shifting

CostsCPR 46.6(2) provides that generally group litigation costs are divided between the generic work which relates to the issues common to all of the...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Claims under the Consumer Protection Act 1987

Brexit: As of exit day (11 pm on 31 January 2020), the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Product liability—causes of action

Brexit: As of exit day (11 pm on 31 January 2020), the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the...

25th Sep

Practice notes

Defences to a claim under the Consumer Protection Act 1987

Brexit: As of exit day (11 pm on 31 January 2020), the UK is no longer an EU Member State. However, in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement, the...

25th Sep