Jeremy Dable

All areas of professional negligence, including lawyers, doctors, dentists, engineers, surveyors and valuers.
Also claims against trustees in bankruptcy.

PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE AND INSOLVENCY PROFILE

Professions in disorder, lives in chaos

The Problem

Turbulent Times,
The pace grows ever more frantic. Provision of professional services in the UK reflects the economic cycle which places architects, surveyors, engineers and valuers under the microscope. Then there is the merry go round of managerial initiatives in the NHS. In law there are hungry threats from commercial forces, the destruction of Legal Aid, cash strapped chaos of the Courts Service, procedural reforms laying fresh booby traps every day.

One wonders how professionals get anything right given the pressures they are under and the demands of a public who can match their information at the click of a mouse without having the deep understanding that comes from training and experience. Nevertheless, professionals are rightly held to high standards of duty and of care. When they make a mistake the consequences are often serious

Clinical and Dental Mistakes
I have detailed and specific experience of claims involving, orthopaedic accidents, delays and misdiagnoses; failure to refer symptoms or diagnose cancers, catastrophic complications in heart bypass operations, failure to identify or treat post operative infections, including MRSA, complications before, during and after birth for both mother and baby, complications of cosmetic surgery and adequacy of consent, implant complications and other medical products, delayed or misdiagnosis of meningitis and legionnaires disease; complications of vasectomies, hysterectomies, bladder and bowel functions; and a full range of dental negligence.

Lawyers Mistakes
Lawyers these days include solicitors, barristers, legal executives, para legals and the office cat. My work has been in respect of each of them and involves allegations of poor advice or omissions in property, construction and commercial transactions, conveyancing, landlord and tenant, easements, boundaries, covenants, failure to draw up wills leaving disappointed legatees, and plain wrong advice and drafting in, finance, mortgages and consumer credit matters. I also attend to the partnership and director's indemnities and contributions which often precede or follow, together with procedures of interim injunctions and winding up applications where necessary and appropriate.



Architects, Surveyors Engineers and Valuers
Sometimes part of the economic cycle, sometimes pawns in post-contactual negotiations, sometimes simply because they get things wrong. Whatever the position, I advise, draft, prosecute defend or mediate.

For the Civil Litigation Partner or Fee Earner.
If the old hand in chambers has either taken a judicial appointment or retired, who can you turn to get a firm grasp of, the property dispute, the director’s fall out or the company debt now turning into full blown commercial litigation? While some practitioners have been hopping from one dying up puddle of specialism to the next, I have maintained a diverse pool of work for over 20 years. f

For the Larger Enterprise
The small reliable firms became bigger, along with their hourly rates. There is no problem instructing the city partner, if you can pay £500 to £600 and hour or do you opt for the “bright young things” at more manageable rates but with far less experience. Either way, are you confident that they are giving you straight, timely advice or is it a question of large sums up front, lots of letters, little progress and a huge bill.

For the Small to Medium Enterprise
The civil litigation or non contentious business partners of the local firm are thinner on the ground than they used to be. Access to real experience at a cost effective rate is getting harder.

For the private individual of modest means
Legal Aid, for most, is a memory. The reliable family solicitor who served the community with its full range of problems for generations is now nearly as rare as the bespoke tailor, farrier or boot maker.

The Solution Offered

I am an experienced civil and commercial barrister, adaptive to human and commercial realities of user hostile civil procedures, while remembering and serving old fashioned “interests of justice” now replaced by the more sinister “overriding objective”.

My work includes property, construction and commercial disputes, conveyancing, landlord and tenant, easements, boundaries, covenants, contractual disputes , sale of goods, franchises, commercial agency and also the partnership and director's disputes which sometimes precede or follow such matters together with accompanying procedures of interim injunctions and winding up applications.

I also advise and represent former bankrupts seeking redress from their trustees for overcharging their estates.

I provide advice and representation in serious Injury claims, with extensive experience in brain injury, industrial disease and clinical negligence. I prepare significant future loss and dependency claims. I negotiated probably the highest settlement ever of a Legionnaires disease claim. My most recent brain injury settlement was for £1, 000, 000.

My experience covers industrial disease litigation, for both claimant and defendant, including: - repetitive strain injuries (RSI- WRULD including carpal tunnel, teno-sinovitis, tennis and golfer’s elbow, trigger finger), vibration white finger (VWF), asbestosis, mesothelioma and occupational asthma, occupational dermatitis, noise induced industrial deafness (NIHL) and acoustic shock.

My clinical negligence work includes delay in diagnosis, surgical complications, MRSA and other infections, and dental negligence.

My solicitors' negligence work involves under-settlements, limitation. I also cover problems with advice on financial and property transactions, conveyancing negligence, lender and mortgage claims and surveyors negligence particularly disrepair and valuation.


Direct Access
Since 2004, individuals have been able to instruct barristers direct, without first instructing a solicitor. I was one of the pioneers to obtain special qualification to receive direct access. I have exercised my special qualification over the last 10 years acting for international corporations in the High Court, and for private individuals in a wide range of problems.

Direct Access is not for everyone and I am not for everyone who wants it. I have deliberately chosen not to put my name forward on the Bar Council list advertised to general public. Even without solicitors, all my direct access work has been by referral of one sort or another.

It cannot be avoided that by instructing a barrister direct, a client may lose many of the advantages of pursuing or defending their case with the help of the solicitor but the the benefits can be remarkable. These include, the ability to have a close and direct relationship with the person offering analysis, direction and persuasion of the case.
A necessary sacrifice in instructing a barrister direct is that you will have to assume some of the responsibilities which might in otherwise be carried out by a solicitor or “paralegal”. Your investment will be effort, time, tedium and sometimes frustration. Your reward will be a deeper understanding of your position, of your risks and how to receive and respond to the advice that you’re given by me.