Quarterly Update Winter 2015 - apil.org.uk01/12/2015 3 • The government intends to “remove legal...
Transcript of Quarterly Update Winter 2015 - apil.org.uk01/12/2015 3 • The government intends to “remove legal...
01/12/2015
1
Quarterly Update Winter 2015
Deborah Evans & Jonathan Wheeler
2nd December 2015
Winter update - line up
• What’s on our agenda
• Meetings
• Campaigns
• Jurisdictions update
• In the media
• Training & internal issues
01/12/2015
2
Autumn Spending Review:
Osborne’s unpleasant surprises…
• Legislative changes will be made to abolish general damages for all low value soft tissue road traffic personal injury claims.
• The right to compensation for financial loss suffered and the cost of any medical treatment required will be maintained. ...
• There will be a consultation but the review confirms it will take effect: April 2017
01/12/2015
3
• The government intends to “remove legal costs by transferring personal injury claims of up to £5,000 to the small claims court.”
• No time scale for the SCL change – expected to form part of the ‘whiplash’ consultation.
Government ‘expects’ the insurance industry to pass an average saving of £40 to £50 per motor insurance policy on to consumers.”
FIXING COSTS IN MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE
CLAIMS
APIL’S STRATEGY FOR INFLUENCE
01/12/2015
4
Timeline
• Press activity in June with regards to the intention to fix costs in clinical negligence claims up to £100,000
• Pre-consultation in August with regards to the intention to fix costs in clinical negligence claims up to £250,000
• Consultation expected January 2016
Pre consultation
Managing behaviour Size of the fixed cost regime
Capping expert fees?
Trigger points and transitional
arrangements
Sliding scale of costs pre and post
issue
01/12/2015
5
Our strategy for influence
• Saying no doesn’t work
• Better to shape the solution
• Work with others to build something practical that can work for injured people and the firms that represent them
Our approach
• Contain the reforms to claims <£25,000
• Use data and FOI to show reforms are not needed >£25,000
• Make sensible proposals for fixed costs <£25,000
• Cost the likely savings
• Agree practical solutions for implementation
01/12/2015
6
What we think
• Any fixed cost scheme should be limited to claims up to £25,000
• Where you fix the cost, you fix the process• Fix costs for liability admitted claims only• Expert fees, if capped, should be capped for both
claimant and defendant• Costs should be fixed carefully, based on
evidence• Certain cases must attract extra funds, or be
exempt
What we think?
• Claims over £25,000 are not disproportionate
• Liability disputed claims do not suit a scheme as the defendant can drive up costs
• Multi track claims do not sit comfortably in a fixed cost scheme
• Capping of expert fees is fraught with danger – best limited to cases under £25,000 with a single expert
01/12/2015
7
What we now know
Flow charts
We have created flow-charts to show exactly what work is required as a minimum in medical negligence claims of £25,000 or less and for higher value claims.
• Used to inform our responses to the consultation
• and to inform our meetings with officials prior to publication of the consultation.
Freedom of Information requests
• APIL
• PIBA
• AvMA
• Law Society
01/12/2015
8
Flawed data: ‘Defendant costs’
NHSLA says claimant costs are six times higher than defendants’
All pre-LASPO claims costs, <£250,000 and excludes in-house legal costs
FOI: additional defendant costs?
Data collection: effects of LASPO
APIL members’ data:
Clear that on average, legal costs and expenses paid by the NHSLA will reduce by 28 per cent as a direct result of the effects of LASPO.
01/12/2015
9
Costs budgets
• 25 defendant/claimant budgets sent in by members;
• Expert spend ranges from £6,000 to £123,000;
• Two budgets showed up to 11 quantum experts instructed;
• If claims go anywhere near trial, spend on experts increases by 60-70 per cent.
CRU data – lifecycle of claims
• 2/3 medical negligence claims submitted are successful.
• While the NHSLA claims that on averageit resolves claims in 1.31 years, nearly a quarter take between two and two and a half years to conclude;
• Claim failures: 12% to 16% of claims fail at the six months to one year stage.
• For every year a claim isn’t dealt with the costs increase by 10 per cent
01/12/2015
10
Meeting with interested parties
• Members meetings
• Meetings with AvMA, Law Society and SCIL
• Meeting with the NHSLA
• Meeting with the Department of Health
• Meeting with MPs
• Clinical negligence conference
Update from Claims Portal
Big issues:
• Roll out of Release 5 next year
• Calculation of fair figure for user pays
• Strategy day
Behaviour:
• Insurers letters to clients
01/12/2015
11
Medco
Consultation
Expert Peer Review Group
Accreditation
JUDICIAL REVIEW
MoJ’s review of CMC’s
• APIL’s position
• Regulator got more teeth!
• PI and PPI
• Due early 2016
01/12/2015
12
Insurance Fraud Taskforce
• PI sub-group – Pre-med offers & third party capture
– Accreditation of experts
– End to cold calling
– Better regulation
Insurance Fraud Taskforce
• Stakeholder event– Reducing limitation
period for whiplash
– Cutting out compo for “de minimis” cases
– Increasing small claims court limit
• Parliament = “fraud epidemic”
• Final report this month
01/12/2015
13
CJC’s review - deafness
• Cenric and Bridget
• Accreditation of
audiometrists
• Early disclosure of audiology
• Info insurers need in letters of claim
• Work histories
Meetings with insurers
• Zurich’s John Latter
• APIL accreditation
• Compulsory PL insurance
• Road safety
• Aviva on Friday
01/12/2015
14
Briggs’ review of civil justice
• People’s court
• Technology
• Designated Judicial Officers
• Unification of HC & CC
• Reform of Court of Appeal
• Interim report due by end of the year
Fundamental dishonesty
• S 57 Criminal Justice & Courts Act– 13th April 2015
– Where liability is not in dispute
– C found to be entitled to damages
– C = no damages at all!
01/12/2015
15
Fundamental dishonesty
• Bad behaviour on both sides– Pollock v Cahill
• How being interpreted?
• Eg’s of D’s dishonesty
• Dossier to CJC
• Support for test cases
Discount rate
• Actuaries report – Spring 2015?
• Freedom of
Information Act
request
01/12/2015
16
External meetings/ events
• Legal Future conference, Manchester
• Post Magazine “claims club” event
• FOIL roundtable
• Ethical marketing
• PIBA annual dinner
Consumer panel
Accreditation and quality
marks
What price a life?
Injury Prevention Day
01/12/2015
17
PEOPIL conference
Expert Witness Institute Conference
British Orthopaedic Conference
Our Parliamentary event
• 3rd November 2015
• Andy McDonald MP
• APIL’s agenda for change
• Animation
01/12/2015
18
Our campaigns
• Damages & Negligence Bill
• Bereavement damages
• Damages for secondary victims
Our campaigns
• Vulnerable witnesses– CPRC
• Compulsory PL insurance– Briefing
– Insurers
– All Party Parliamentary Group, 15th December
01/12/2015
19
Rehabilitation code• Officially came into play December 1st
• Copies of the Rehabilitation Code and case manager guide are on the APIL website
Serious Injury GuideASB Aspire LLP Francis Lacy-Scott
Ashton KCJ Solicitors Richard Foyster
Atherton Godfrey John McQuater
Barlow Robbins LLP Helen Goatley
Barratt Goff and Tomlinson David Tomlinson
Blakeley Solicitors Simon Blakeley
Beardsells Howard Mansell
Beecham Peacock Kirsten Scott
Bolt Burdon Kemp Marilene Antoni
Boyes Turner Susan BrownBoys and Maughan Andrew Baker
Brethertons Jon Rees
Carpenters Ann Allister
CFG Law Philip Coulthurst
Clarke Willmott LLP Martin Pettingell
01/12/2015
20
Serious Injury GuideColes Miller Solicitors Adrian Cormack Field Fisher Jill GreenfieldFletchers Adrian Denson Ford Simey LLP Julian NichollsFreeth Cartwright Jane GouldingGeorge Ide Solicitors Claire WatsonHealys Paul KeownHiggs and Sons Solicitors Mark ParsonsIrwin Mitchell Colin Ettinger (London, Southampton,
Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge and International)
Jonathan Betts (Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle, Middlesborough and Scotland/Glasgow)
JNP Legal Rebecca ReesLiddys Kevin Liddy Mason Baggott and Garson Tim PhippsMorrish Solicitors Martin BareNovum Law Daniel Green
Serious Injury GuideOsbornes Ben Posford
Pattinson & Brewer Marcus Weatherby
Patrick Blackmore Patrick Blackmore
Peace Legal Jas Singh
Pierre Thomas and Partners Isabel Bathurst
Potter Rees Dolan Hugh Potter
Pudsey Legal Paul Kaye
Serious Law Ben Priestley
Shoosmiths (Access Legal) Rose Donoghue
Simpkins and Co Solicitors Steven Simpkins
Slater & Gordon Richard Crabtree
Smith Jones Solicitors Brett Dixon
Stewarts Paul Paxton
Stones Solicitors James Browne
Thomas Dunton Vernon Hadida
Thompsons Samantha Hemsley
01/12/2015
21
Jurisdictions update
• APIL’s cross-jurisdictions committee
• APIL Scotland– Sheriff’s court jurisdiction
– Specialist PI judges
– Expenses & Funding of Litigation Bill
– Apologies Bill
– Removing limitation for child abuse claims
Jurisdictions update
• Northern Ireland– Statutory bereavement damages
– Access to justice review
• Wales– Justice Stakeholder Committee
01/12/2015
22
APIL in the media
APIL in the media
• Chancellor’s Autumn statement
• Negligence & Damages Bill
• Time bar in child abuse cases
• Court closures in Wales
• Bereavement damages in N Ireland
• Clinical negligence fixed fees
01/12/2015
23
Social media
Social media
Blogs
• Human cost of negligence (Alison Eddy, July)
• Need for prevention (Deborah Evans, August)
• Our arguments (Deborah Evans, September)
• A cautionary tale from Wales (Jane Rogers, September)
01/12/2015
24
APIL review of governance
SLICK, MODERN ORGANISATION
Diversity of EC
members? What working parties do we
need?
Skills of EC members?
Succession planning?
How big should the EC
be?
What sub-committees do we need?
Maximum terms?
What APIL looks like today
c4000 members
1000 + accredited members
c700 experts
25 staff
01/12/2015
25
Annual conferenceBirmingham Hilton Metropole
4 – 5 May 2016
Annual Conference
Lord Faulks QC
Keynote Speaker
01/12/2015
26
Also coming soon