Expertise

What we will do for you

At Clarke Willmott we pride ourselves in the professional support we provide to seriously injured individuals and their family members. As part of our service we offer our clients:

  • a first interview without charge
  • the convenience of visiting claimants at home or in hospital
  • excellent disabled access at all our offices

Catastrophic injury claims are inevitably complex and awards for damages can be significant. Our team of specialist catastrophic injury solicitors have the skills and experience to investigate and obtain suitable funding. We understand that money cannot always fully compensate for serious injury, but it can help individuals to cope with the consequences. Following a serious accident we will:

  • arrange an immediate needs assessment under the terms of the rehabilitation protocol;
  • seek interim funding to ensure that life is made as comfortable as possible in the circumstances pending the full settlement of the claim;
  • arrange for the purchase and adaptation of suitable accommodation to meet the future needs of the injured individual and their family

As part of our service we will interview witnesses, obtain police accident or HSE reports and commission accident investigation reports. Our team will also obtain reports from appropriate medical experts, along with those relating to care, rehabilitation, employment and loss of earnings. If it is to our client's advantage we will also seek an early determination of liability for the injury.

During the difficult time following a serious accident it is important for the injured individual to receive the best possible care and support. We will engage a suitable and experienced case manager to assist in the rehabilitation process and to ensure that the individual’s long term needs are appropriately met.

At Clarke Willmott consideration will be given to securing settlement of claims based upon the periodic payment of damages for future care, with those payments index linked to protect against the rise in inflation. Our team of legal professionals can provide expert advice on the overall assessment of damages and offer excellent support for cases that are taken to trial when a settlement cannot be achieved by negotiation.

Paying for our work

We recognise that funding or paying for legal advice is a major worry for almost everybody.

The good news is that it is now almost always possible to obtain legal advice without having to make any payment.

The first step is to contact one of the Catastrophic injury team using our free phone number. Please ask us to call you back to save your phone bill.

We need to take details from you to inform you whether we are able to help you.
We will also provide basic advice both in relation to the circumstances of the injury but
also how our work can be paid for.

This initial work is always undertaken without charge. After all until we have spoken to you we cannot tell whether you have a good case or not and you may not be sure that you want to instruct us until you are satisfied we can do the job.

Where appropriate we will visit you at home or in hospital. This would generally be without charge. If we have to raise a charge for this we will tell you in advance and agree the amount with you.

Once we have the initial details of your claim we can advise on the appropriate method of funding.

This might be through a

Legal Expenses Insurance policy
Or
A Conditional Fee Agreement.

It is very rare that we are unable to find a means of funding our work which would avoid your having to pay.

If you are required to pay then we advise you in writing before any cost is incurred and the likely amount so that you can make an informed decision whether you wish to proceed or not.

We can also agree a maximum figure with you so that you know at the outset the total you might have to pay.

A full investment management service is provided in house to maximise the investment return on awards, together with the appointment of a receiver for those clients unable to manage their own financial affairs. We can also set up an appropriate trust to protect damages awards.

If you need to discuss anything further with our Catastrophic Injury team, please contact us on our free phone number 0800 316 8892, or fill in the online enquiry form, and we will answer your initial questions as best we can.