Barrister Negligence Claim Proceeds With Samuels' Help

Barristers are legal experts, many of whom have their own specialist areas upon which they advise clients. Barristers have a duty of care to their clients to provide a high standard of legal advice. When a barrister breaches that duty of care, the client can bring a professional negligence claim against the barrister, if the poor advice has caused financial loss, or a lost chance to pursue a claim. 

Samuels Solicitors LLP are expert lawyers dealing with barrister negligence cases. We are currently helping a client who was left to pay significant legal fees to their solicitors and barrister, as well as having to pay costs to their opponent. This was all caused by negligent advice our client received from his former barrister.

What Do Barristers Do?

Barristers, also referred to as counsel, are usually instructed by solicitors, although some barristers accept instructions directly from members of the public.

Barristers generally provide advice about the merits of a claim or a defence, they draft legal papers and represent clients in court. In the High Court, only barristers are permitted to appear in a trial.

Barristers are not permitted to handle money from clients, which is why they do not carry out transactional work such as mergers and acquisitions, or property sales and purchases, although they may be instructed to advise on those cases occasionally.  

When a client receives advice from a barrister about the strength of their claim, or defence, this helps a client make decisions about how to proceed. If a barrister's advice about the strength of a case is wrong, it can have devastating consequences for clients, as they could be encouraged to pursue claims which are weak, or defend cases which ought to be settled. 

Barrister Negligence Claim For Damages

Our client (Mr A) instructed his former solicitors to deal with a complex claim involving two opponents. Early on in the case, our client's former solicitors instructed a barrister to provide advice on the strength of Mr A’s claim. Unfortunately, the advice provided to Mr A by the barrister was wrong. 

Opponent 1 issued a claim against Mr A and opponent 2. Mr A himself issued a claim against opponent 2, encouraged by the barrister's advice that he had valid grounds to do so. 

The same barrister went on to draft the statements of case, including Mr A's claim against opponent 2. The statements of case were weak and bordering on incoherent. 

During the course of the court proceedings, the barrister was unable to continue to acting for Mr A, and a replacement barrister was instructed. The replacement barrister realised the first barrister had been negligent, advised Mr A straight away that there were significant issues with the advice he had been given. Mr A withdrew his claim against the opponent 2 and agreed to pay her legal costs.  

Mr A is now pursuing a claim against the original barrister for the losses he has suffered as a result of following negligent advice. His losses included the legal costs he had to pay to opponent 2, as well as the legal fees he wasted with his former solicitors and first barrister, bringing the claim against opponent 2 in the first place. 

It is important to note that barristers can have different opinions about the law, and just because one barrister disagrees with the other, it doesn't necessarily mean that one of them must be negligent. In order to bring a claim for barrister negligence, you have to prove that the advice given by the barrister was so poor that no reasonably competent barrister could have given that advice.

How To Start A Barrister Negligence Claim?

When Samuels was instructed by Mr A, we reviewed the advice given by his former and replacement barrister, and assessed whether Mr A could meet the three elements of the test for bringing a professional negligence claim, which are:

1. Did the barrister owe Mr A a duty of care? Yes the barrister owed Mr A a duty of care, as he was his client and Mr A was therefore entitled to expect that the barrister would provide him with advice which was correct. 
2. Did the barrister breach his duty of care to Mr A? Yes, the barrister breached his duty of care to Mr A, as the advice was wrong, and therefore fell below the standard Mr A was entitled to expect.
3. Did Mr A suffer financial loss as a result of the barrister negligence? Yes, Mr A had to pay costs to his opponent as well as wasting legal fees on a case which should never have been brought. 

As Mr A can satisfy all three of these requirements, he is able to bring a claim for negligence against the barrister to compensate him for his losses. In addition, Mr A will be able to recover the majority of the legal costs he incurs with Samuels in relation to his barrister negligence claim. 

As with all legal professionals, Mr A's former barrister has professional indemnity insurance, which means Mr A can be certain that he will receive the damages and legal costs that he is entitled to. 

How Much Does a Barrister Negligence Claim Cost?

Bringing a claim against a barrister means that more legal fees will be incurred, which can be very difficult if you have already spent money on a claim or defence which has failed, because of your barrister's negligence. 

In many cases, Samuels will be able to bring a barrister negligence claim for you on a no win no fee basis, also known as a conditional fee agreement or CFA. Bringing a no win no fee barrister negligence claim means that you wouldn't have to pay our legal fees along the way, but the whole amount becomes payable when you win, along with a success fee. The success fee is not paid by the negligent barrister, but is paid from the compensation you recover. 

We would be happy to speak to you about whether your barrister negligence claim is suitable for a no win no fee arrangement, as this does not apply in all cases. 

Get Legal Help To Bring A Barrister Negligence Claim

If your barrister has provided you with advice which is wrong, and you have suffered financial loss as a result, we will be able to help. Bringing a barrister negligence claim can be daunting and it's important that you find a law firm to help you, who have the necessary expertise. 

Samuels Solicitors LLP has a niche specialism dealing with professional negligence claims against barristers, solicitors, accountants and surveyors. We have dealt with negligence claims against professionals for many decades. Our expert lawyers will guide you through every step of the process for bringing a barrister negligence claim. 

Contact us to speak to an expert barrister negligence lawyer, who will be able to advise you how to proceed.