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Personal Injury Solicitors
How To Bring A Claim Against A Local Authority/School
In civil cases the injured person commences a case through a Solicitor whom they select. If the injured person is a child, a case may be brought on their behalf by a parent or guardian. Civil cases seek financial compensation for the physical, emotional and psychological harms done to the persons by the acts of the abuser from those responsible which could be a Local Authority, a certain home or school or the abuser.
A person seeking recovery in a civil action can claim damages for psychological harm, medical and therapeutic care and for the impairment of their capacity to carry on their life.
The standard of proof required to win a civil claim is on the balance of probabilities after considering the evidence available, whether it is given in documents or given as oral testimony and is a less rigorous standard than is required in a criminal case. If an abuser has been successfully prosecuted for abuse against the injured person, then this can be used and is good evidence that the acts took place. If a civil action is successful, an abuser or his employers (if the abuse occurred in a home or Foster Care) will be ordered by the Court to make payment to a person harmed.
When seeking compensation there are many pitfalls including a loss of privacy but at the same time the person bringing a claim may feel a sense of empowerment or a sense of closure by showing that the abuser did in fact cause the harms which have troubled the abused person's life. However, there is no guarantee of success. Most survivors do find the litigation process taxing and support is really important. There are various support groups around the country which can be accessed through www.napac.org.uk .
The Process Of Bringing A Claim
The first step in bringing a claim is to contact a Solicitor who will discuss funding with the client as there are several options available in this type of claim. The first, is Legal Aid. If the client is eligible, i.e. he/she is in receipt of benefits or a low income, then the Solicitor will make an application to the Legal Services Commission. The second option to fund the claim is by being a Private Client of the firm of Solicitors. This would mean paying for the work on account throughout the claim. As soon as funding is in place, work can begin. In addition, the solicitor might be prepared to consider a no win, no fee agreement. [See funding link]
The Solicitor will then take a lengthy detailed statement in connection with the abuse suffered, where and when. In addition, what happened before and afterwards.
In order for a claim to succeed, the Solicitor will need to prove in the case of institutional abuse that the Authority / School / Home had a Duty of Care to the client which means to provide a safe environment for the client to grow up in. Then we must show that this Duty of Care was breached because of the abuse. This is the hardest part; we must show that the systems failed to meet a certain standard, which led to the abuse.
Additionally, the Authority / School / Home as Employers could be held vicariously liable for the actions of their staff members. For example, if it was found that a teacher in a school was acting inappropriately, the employer, having employed the teacher becomes vicariously liable for any breach in duty by the employee.
There are time limits for starting a court case so no one should delay. You must seek advice as soon as you can. [See limitation periods in sexual assault cases]
Once the breach of Duty of Care has been established, the Solicitor will then need to prove the injuries. In some cases, clients may have suffered the abuse at an early age and be bringing the action some 20 years later. It is therefore necessary for a psychiatric report to be commissioned in order that it can be established exactly how the client's life has been affected because of the abuse and how it will be affected in the future.
Thereafter if we can establish a case discussions will be entered in to between the Solicitor and the opponent as to whether they will admit liability. If they will not admit liability proceedings will be issued and the claim tested before a Court. If the opponents are prepared to admit liability to settle the claim the damages could be from between £3,000 - £80,000 and depends completely on the individual.
Time
A Civil action is extremely lengthy and it can take anywhere from 12 months to 3 years to settle a claim, sometimes longer. It can be a distressing time for the Client and it is therefore important that they have support around them from Counsellors or volunteers.