Supporting Vulnerable Clients

Our civil litigation justice system is focused upon the concepts of ‘fairness and reasonableness’. As lawyers we must facilitate access to justice and deal systematically with our clients to ensure justice is achievable by all.

One hurdle we can encounter whilst trying to attain this is ‘vulnerability’. Vulnerability can prevent or hinder access to legal services; each person is unique and the ability to fully understand the complex legal issues within a clinical negligence claim is more difficult for some than others.

Here at Forbes, we consider adaptions to our practice and services in order to identify and meet the needs of clients who may be vulnerable, as a matter of the upmost importance when bringing a clinical negligence claim.

Who might be a vulnerable client?

Under the Civil Procedure Rules (‘CPR’), ‘A person should be considered as vulnerable when a factor – which could be personal or situational, permanent or temporary – may adversely affect their participation in proceedings’. Practice Direction 1A of the CPR considers a non-exhaustive list of factors which may cause vulnerability (many of which may be the resulting damage/injury from medical negligence), including:

a.       Age, immaturity or lack of understanding;

b.       Communication or language difficulties (including literacy);

c.       Physical disability or impairment, or health condition;

d.       Mental health condition or significant impairment of any aspect of their intelligence or social functioning (including learning difficulties);

e.       The impact on them of the subject matter of, or facts relevant to, the case (an example being having witnessed or been part of a traumatic event relating to the case);

f.        Their relationship with a party or witness; and

g.       Social, domestic or cultural circumstances.

If an individual presents any of these factors, this does not necessarily classify them vulnerable; furthermore, we must assess whether any displayed factors affect the ability of the individual to understand and express themselves throughout proceedings, put evidence before the court, respond or comply with a request from the court, attend a hearing or instruct us before, during and after a hearing. In medical negligence cases, a client’s condition and prognosis may worsen over time.it is imperative for us to remain vigilant and assess vulnerability contemporaneously as we progress with a claim.

Common vulnerable clients  that we act for in clinical negligence cases might include individuals who have learning disabilities, sensory and cognitive impairment, brain injuries, psychological/emotional distress, are neurodiverse  or have  mental health difficulties.

How can we can tailor our services to deal with a vulnerable client?

When one of our experienced advisors at Forbes become aware of any ‘risk factors’, we can then commit to helping our client  express their wishes and objectives and have their voice heard.  We will do our best to assist in overcoming any difficulties to interpret and understand any particular legal issues or advice provided. In order for us to do this, we will often assess our clients preferred means of communication, access to our services (face to face or online) and ensure they understand and are able to act on any information that we provide.

In some cases, a client will not have capacity to litigate and needs a litigation friend to act on their behalf.  Capacity to litigate, for welfare and to handle property and affairs is sometimes assessed with a capacity assessment.  Any offer on this type of case must be approved by a court in order to provide a second layer of protection.

At Forbes, we are sensitive to the needs of our clients along their litigation journey.

Our clinical negligence team adapt our services to accommodate you the best that we can.  It is our priority to be approachable, accessible, and understood.  Litigation is a difficult process, and we aim to support you on the journey.  If you have suffered harm as a result of substandard medical treatment, we invite you to explore the assistance and services that we are able to offer in our clinical negligence team at Forbes by contacting the team on 0800 037 4625.