Professional Negligence

If you have suffered loss as a result of being let down by your surveyor, architect, accountant, solicitor or other professional working in your trust you may be able to claim damages to compensate you for your loss. We are experienced in bringing claims against all types of professional.

There is no automatic right to compensation. To succeed you must show the professional was negligent or in breach of contract.

To advise you whether you could succeed, we must ascertain the facts and this will involve taking a detailed statement from you and studying the relevant papers.

The aim of the courts in England and Wales is to put the innocent party into the position he would have been but for the negligence/breach of contract.

James Bell (Partner) and Claire Harrison (Solicitor) have many years of experience acting for claimants and the insurers of professionals. Since the formation of BPK we now predominately act for claimants.

Their combined experience gives the benefits of:

  • Commercially aware and robust advice at the outset;
  • Minimal reliance on Barristers for advice, drafting Court documents and pleadings and advocacy
  • Awareness of the many different routes to dispute resolution;
  • negotiation / mediation / arbitration / litigation;
  • A database of approved experts with a proven track record
  • First class legal knowledge

Generally, the losing party must pay the costs of the winner. Thus if you succeed most of your costs will be paid for by the loser, in addition to the damages. If you lose, you will normally be liable for our costs and those of the other party.

It is therefore vital that you proceed only after receiving the best advice on the chances of succeeding and the likely damages recoverable.

There are a number of ways of funding the claim, which we would be pleased to discuss in more detail:

  • Legal Expenses Insurance;
  • Conditional Fees (the so called no win/no fee agreement);
  • Damages Based Agreements
  • Hourly rates for agreed levels of investigation and advice;
  • Fixed price quotations for agreed levels of investigation and advice.

We will at all times ensure the costs incurred will be proportionate to the amount of the claim.

Contact Us directly:

Email James Bell
Email Claire Harrison
01228 888999