Professional Negligence Claims
If you’ve received negligent advice from a professional adviser, our specialist team can help you to make a professional negligence claim.
Negligent advice from a solicitor or other professional can result in significant losses if you rely on that advice to your detriment. In such cases, it is often possible to reclaim those losses from the professional or their insurers, making sure that you do not suffer due to someone else’s mistakes.
BDB Pitmans’ professional negligence solicitors are recognised as legal experts in this complex area. We are particularly well known for our strong track record of success in professional negligence claims against solicitors, including in relation to issues such as the negligent conduct of litigation and arbitration, commercial contracts, investments, property developments, conveyancing, Wills and trusts.
We take into account different methods of mediation and dispute resolution to achieve a result that is best for you, while also having fierce litigation skills, having won cases at the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and High Court.
We take into account different methods of mediation and dispute resolution to achieve a result that is best for you, while also having fierce litigation skills, having won cases at the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and High Court.
Our team has close relationships with After The Event (ATE) insurance providers, so we can progress your claim both quickly and cost-effectively.
Our professional negligence solicitors act for clients across the country and internationally from our offices in London, Cambridge, Reading or Southampton. We can offer a convenient, high quality service in person, over the phone, via email and through video conferencing, fitting around your schedule and commitments.
As well as acting for individuals, we are also experts in group claims, having repeatedly won substantial damages for groups of clients making joint claims against the same negligent professionals.
To discuss how our professional negligence solicitors can help you, please get in touch.
Our clients
We work with a wide array of clients, both individuals and groups, in the UK and internationally. Our team can help with all manner of professional negligence claims against professionals based in England and Wales or internationally where a deal was made under English law.
Our professional negligence solicitors can assist with:
- Professional negligence claims against solicitors
- Professional negligence claims against barristers
- Professional negligence claims against architects
- Professional negligence claims against accountants
- Professional negligence claims against surveyors
- Professional negligence claims against conveyancers
- Professional negligence claims against valuers
- Professional negligence claims against financial advisers
- Professional negligence claims against insurers
- Professional negligence claims in relation to trusts
Why choose BDB Pitmans for your professional negligence claim?
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1 True expertise in both complex and straightforward professional negligence claims
Our professional negligence claims service is led by Partner Jonathan Sachs who offers:
- Over 30 years’ experience as a specialist claimant professional negligence lawyer
- Expertise in both individual and group claims
- An extensive history of winning cases at the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and High Court
- A track record of frequently securing settlements for his clients through mediation
- Professional Negligence Lawyers Association (PNLA) membership
BDB Pitmans is ranked by leading client guide the Legal 500 for Commercial Litigation, which includes our expertise with professional negligence claims for businesses.
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2 Strong track record of success in high value professional negligence claims
Our professional negligence solicitors regularly act for clients in matters valued at in excess of £1million with a very high success rate in achieving out-of-court settlements and securing compensation through the courts.
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3 You will keep more of any damages secured
We want you to keep the maximum possible damages following a successful claim. To that end, our professional negligence claims are sometimes funded through attractive arrangements with specialist litigation funders meaning you will normally keep more of any damages won if you pursue a claim with BDB Pitmans compared to many of our competitors.
Professional negligence claims fees and funding
We can in the strongest cases offer no win, no fee professional negligence claims funding, meaning you will not need to pay any fees upfront to start a claim, and our fees will only be payable if we secure compensation for you.
To ensure you receive the maximum compensation following a successful claim, we have secured favourable funding arrangements that allow our clients to keep significantly more of any damages won than many other firms can offer.
We work with carefully selected After The Event (ATE) insurance providers, allowing us to quickly and cost-effectively progress your claim. We will also ensure you have adequate insurance to cover the other side’s fees in the event your claim is not successful.
We answer your questions about professional negligence claims
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1 What counts as professional negligence?
Not every mistake made by a professional will necessarily mean that the client is able to make a professional negligence claim.
At the most basic level, professional negligence is where:
- A professional has a duty of care towards their client
- The client is reliant on the professional’s training and expertise to make a decision
- The professional breaches their duty of care by giving incorrect advice
- The client experiences a loss as a result of relying on incorrect advice
Whether a professional has a duty of care, whether their advice was incorrect and whether this resulted in a loss for a client are all issues that are commonly contested during professional negligence claims, so it is important to be confident that you have a valid claim before moving forwards.
You can read more about this in our article Professional negligence – a simplified test.
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2 What can you claim for professional negligence?
Where professional negligence is established, the general principle is that the claimant should be put back in the position they would have been in had the professional not been negligent. This means they should be able to claim for any losses they have experienced as a result of the professional’s negligence.
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3 How long do professional negligence claims take?
This will depend entirely on the circumstances. Typically, it will take at least twelve months to resolve a straightforward claim if a settlement can be agreed upon, but complex claims and those dealt with through the courts can take much longer.
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4 What is the Pre-action Protocol for Professional Negligence?
The Pre-action Protocol for Professional Negligence is a process designed by the Ministry of Justice to encourage claimants and respondents to resolve claims faster and more cost-effectively without the need for court proceedings.
The pre-action protocol includes various stages to help the parties identify the issues involved, share information, make informed decisions about whether to move forward and settle the dispute through alternative means, such as mediation, wherever possible.
There are different pre-action protocols for claims against architects, engineers, quantity surveyors and healthcare providers.
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5 What is the time limit for professional negligence claims?
You normally have six years to bring a professional negligence claim counted from the date the negligence occurred. If you only find out about the negligence later, you will normally have three years to bring a claim from the date when you first became aware of the issue.
Different times limits can apply under certain circumstances, so it is important not to delay seeking expert legal advice.
Insights from our professional negligence solicitors
Speak to our professional negligence solicitors about how we can help you
To discuss how our professional negligence solicitors can help you, please get in touch.
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