If a trust has admitted something to you, that is not the end of the process. Causation and value are usually the longer part.
Claimant succeeded
[2026] EWHC 2294 (KB)·2026·Damages assessed at trial
An eight-year-old brought to Frimley Park Hospital in January 2018 with severe breathing difficulty was discharged the same afternoon instead of being admitted and given steroids; the next day he had a cardiac arrest and catastrophic brain injury. The Trust admitted negligence and causation and this judgment decides disputed heads of damages.
Sending a child home from A&E with signs of life-threatening asthma, rather than admitting and treating, was admitted to be negligent. Once liability is admitted the dispute moves to how care and lost earnings should be valued.
Claimant succeeded
[2026] EWHC 1574 (KB)·2026·Liability and damages decided at trial
A 37-year-old alcohol-dependent man admitted for a facial abscess was not given the prophylactic vitamin B1 (Pabrinex) that guidelines required during withdrawal, which the Trust admitted was a breach. The judge found this caused Wernicke's encephalopathy and a lasting functional disorder, and set the main heads of damages including a 24-hour care regime.
Breach was admitted, so the case turned on proving the brain injury was caused by the omission rather than by pre-existing conditions. It illustrates how catastrophic-injury awards are built from a care multiplicand, case management and accommodation rather than a single headline figure.
Claimant succeeded
[2026] EWCC 26·2026·Liability decided at trial
A theatre nurse with worsening palpitations saw a hospital physician who admittedly failed to arrange 24-hour ECG monitoring. The judge found monitoring would have caught her atrial fibrillation in time for anticoagulants to prevent the stroke she suffered.
Palpitations that keep coming back need proper heart-rhythm monitoring. Where a missed test would have led to blood-thinning treatment, a later stroke can be laid at the hospital's door.
Claimant succeeded£811,247
[2026] EWHC 657 (KB)·2026·Damages assessed at trial
The trust admitted it negligently failed to diagnose Daisy Lynch's developmental hip dysplasia at birth, so it was not picked up until she was three, by which time simple non-surgical treatment was no longer possible. She went through repeated hip operations and a total hip replacement at 22, and the court assessed her damages after an eight-day trial.
Even where liability is admitted, damages can be heavily contested, and the court can add a provisional damages order letting the claimant return for more if a specified complication later occurs. The award covered pain and suffering, lost earnings, future care and future surgery.
Claimant succeeded
[2024] EWHC 2809 (KB)·2024·Damages assessed at trial
A GP saw Ms Cullen three times over five weeks with a persistent cough, sore throat and tiredness but did not make an urgent cancer referral; her laryngeal cancer was diagnosed at stage III about three months later. Liability was admitted, and the trial dealt with disputed care costs and the defendant's allegation that she had been fundamentally dishonest, which the judge rejected.
A delayed cancer referral claim turns on what extra treatment the delay caused; here the admitted delay meant chemotherapy, a total laryngectomy and neck dissections that earlier diagnosis would have avoided. Social media posts relied on to allege dishonesty were found not to contradict her evidence.
Claimant succeeded
[2024] EWHC 2652 (KB)·2024·Damages assessed at trial
A child with cerebral palsy from admitted birth negligence lived in an unsuitable house with stairs, and his family sought a large interim payment to buy and adapt a suitable home. The Master applied the Eeles test, was not satisfied with the evidence for a £2 million property, but approved an interim award based on a more conservative £950,000 valuation.
Interim payments for accommodation need comparative property evidence showing the price is reasonable. Courts will approve a conservative figure rather than the family's preferred one if the evidence is thin.
Settlement approved£3.85M
[2024] EWHC 2569 (KB)·2024·Settlement approved by the court
A 23-year-old mother was discharged after giving birth in July 2015, developed breathlessness and palpitations, and suffered a cardiac arrest after being readmitted, leaving her with severe hypoxic brain damage. The claim settled on the day the quantum trial was due to start and the court approved the package for her as a protected party.
Maternal claims are not limited to injuries during labour itself; a failure in care in the weeks after birth that causes brain injury can lead to a multi-million-pound settlement. Where the injured person lacks capacity, a judge must approve any settlement.
Settlement approved£5.75M
[2024] EWHC 2499 (KB)·2024·Settlement approved by the court
A child born in April 2019 after an induced labour suffered fetal bradycardia and a brain injury; the Trust admitted the clinical failures by letter in April 2021. The court approved a settlement of a £5.75m lump sum plus lifelong index-linked periodical payments, worth about £16.7m in total.
Serious cerebral palsy claims are usually settled as a lump sum plus annual periodical payments for care, so the headline total depends on how long the child lives. Before approving a deal for a child the judge checks it sits within the range a court would have awarded.
Claim failed
[2024] EWHC 2338 (KB)·2024·Liability decided at trial
Admitted with perforated diverticulitis, the claimant had a laparoscopic washout and deteriorated about 36 hours later, needing an emergency Hartmann's procedure with a stoma and intensive care. She alleged she had asked for a colorectal referral, was improperly moved to private care and was not properly consented, but the judge found none of this proved and dismissed the claims against both the surgeon and the trust.
Consent disputes turn on evidence of what was actually discussed; where the records and the surgeon's account show the alternative procedure was explained, a claim based on inadequate consent is likely to fail.
Claimant succeeded
[2024] EWHC 615 (KB)·2024·Damages assessed at trial
The trust admitted that a misreported smear delayed the diagnosis of cervical cancer, and the claimant, who lost her fertility through treatment, asked for a further interim payment to fund surrogacy abroad. The judge refused because the evidence was not yet complete enough to be confident a trial judge would allow that cost.
Even with liability admitted, an interim payment will only be ordered for sums the court is confident will be recovered at trial. Whether overseas surrogacy costs are recoverable depends on a reasonableness test decided on full evidence.
Mixed outcome
[2024] EWHC 1304 (KB)·2024·Liability decided at trial
A woman went to A&E with extreme lower-leg pain and was sent home by a nurse practitioner instead of being seen by a senior doctor or referred to surgeons; she developed a necrotising soft tissue infection and lost her leg. The Trust admitted negligence but tried to rely on the nurse's evidence disputing how much pain she reported; the Master ruled that evidence inadmissible because the defence had never properly pleaded that dispute.
An NHS trust cannot admit negligence and then quietly contest the facts at trial without pleading them. Severe, out-of-proportion pain in a limb is a recognised warning sign of necrotising infection that calls for senior review.
Claimant succeeded
[2024] EWHC 390 (KB)·2024·Liability decided at trial
Mr Gahir went to his GP with fever, severe headache, nausea and confusion; the GP diagnosed migraine, and he was not admitted to hospital until 55 hours later, when herpes simplex encephalitis was treated with acyclovir. The judge found the combination of fever, headache and confusion required urgent hospital referral and that earlier treatment would have left him far less disabled.
Fever, headache and confusion together are a recognised red flag for brain infection, and a GP who attributes them to migraine without arranging urgent admission may be found negligent. The judge accepted the family's account of the patient's confusion during the consultation.
Settlement approved£5.56M
[2024] EWHC 25 (KB)·2024·Settlement approved by the court
The baby's shoulders became stuck during delivery and manoeuvres failed, so she was deprived of oxygen and left with cerebral palsy; the Trust admitted in 2012 that it failed to deliver her with sufficient or safe speed. The court approved a settlement of about £5.56m plus lifelong periodical payments.
Shoulder dystocia claims are not only about arm injuries; a prolonged delay in freeing the baby can cause brain injury, and damages then reflect lifelong care needs. Approval judgments like this are one of the few public sources showing what such settlements are worth.
Settlement approved£2.5M
[2023] EWHC 2975 (KB)·2023·Settlement approved by the court
A 37-year-old mother suffered a cardiac arrest because intravenous fluids were not given during spinal anaesthesia just after her daughter's birth, leaving her with a brain injury; the hospital admitted liability. The court used its inherent jurisdiction to approve a settlement worth roughly £5.56m including periodical payments.
Anaesthetic errors around delivery can found a maternal negligence claim even when the baby is unharmed. Courts can approve settlements for adults with cognitive impairment even where they have not formally been found to lack capacity.
Claimant succeeded£340,000
[2023] EWHC 2986 (KB)·2023·Liability decided at trial
The Trust admitted it missed an aortic dissection that emergency surgery would probably have cured, and settled the fatal claim for £340,000. When the widow and children later sued for psychiatric injury from witnessing the death, the Trust tried to strike that out but withdrew after discovering the earlier settlement had never been court-approved.
Fatal claims involving children need court approval of any settlement or it may not bind them. A missed aortic dissection in a chest-pain patient was accepted as negligent and fatal.
Claimant succeeded£6.87M
[2023] EWHC 1770 (KB)·2023·Damages assessed at trial
The CTG showed a pathological trace that went unread for 50 minutes before an emergency caesarean; the child was born with severe quadriplegic cerebral palsy and the Trust admitted liability in 2019. After a nine-day trial on damages, Ritchie J awarded a lump sum of about £6.87m plus care periodical payments of nearly £395,000 a year.
Where liability is admitted but the parties are far apart on the cost of care, housing and equipment, the court will hold a full quantum trial and decide each head of loss. This judgment is a rare published breakdown of a complete cerebral palsy award.
Settlement approved£9.3M
[2023] EWHC 1547 (KB)·2023·Settlement approved by the court
A low-birth-weight baby was not fed adequately overnight and his blood sugar was not checked early enough, causing hypoglycaemic brain damage; the Trust admitted liability in 2018. The court approved a £9.3m lump sum plus periodical payments and held the Trust also owed interest for accepting the offer late.
Negligence in the first days of a newborn's life, not just during labour, can produce some of the largest clinical negligence awards. If a defendant accepts a Part 36 offer late, interest for the delay can be claimed on top.
Settlement approved£6.5M
[2023] EWHC 963 (KB)·2023·Settlement approved by the court
A 19-year-old with severe cerebral palsy from a brain injury at his 2004 birth settled his claim without any admission of liability. The judge approved a package of a £6.5m lump sum plus lifelong periodical payments for care, with a total capitalised value of about £17.2m.
Settlements for people who lack capacity must be approved by the court, and the judge weighs litigation risk against the offer. Combining a lump sum with periodical payments is often preferred because it guarantees care funding for life.
Claim failed
[2023] EWHC 1911 (KB)·2023·Liability decided at trial
A woman attended a GP drop-in clinic with groin pain after an injection had missed the vein; the GP diagnosed a haematoma and sent her away with painkillers, and days later she was admitted with necrotising fasciitis and her right leg was amputated at the hip. The judge found the GP's examination and diagnosis were ones a reasonable body of GPs would support, so the claim failed despite the defendant accepting that referral would have saved her leg.
Even where a devastating outcome and causation are accepted, a claim fails unless the clinician's decision fell outside what a responsible body of practitioners would have done. A properly documented history and examination that reasonably excluded infection was a complete defence.
Claimant succeeded
[2023] EWHC 191 (KB)·2023·Liability decided at trial
Dr Somoye died of abdominal sepsis and multi-organ failure a week after a myomectomy; the trust's own root cause analysis found failures to act on signs of infection and to follow the sepsis pathway, and it admitted liability before proceedings. The court refused to let the trust withdraw that admission and entered judgment for her husband, with damages to be assessed.
A pre-action admission of liability is binding unless the court permits withdrawal, and later-obtained expert evidence will not usually justify that. Failing to follow a hospital sepsis pathway is a recognised basis for a claim.
Claimant succeeded£298,617
[2023] EWHC 42 (KB)·2023·Liability and damages decided at trial
An engineer had a then-novel transanal rectal cancer operation without being told of the risks to sexual, urinary and bowel function, and was consented on the day of surgery. The judge found the trust failed to follow NICE guidance, accepted he would have chosen a conventional laparoscopic operation, and awarded £298,616.73.
Consent taken on the day of surgery without explaining material risks or alternatives can found a claim even if the surgery itself was competently done. New or learning-curve procedures need particularly careful counselling.
Claimant succeeded£4.68M
[2022] EWHC 2417 (KB)·2022·Damages assessed at trial
A 20-year-old motorcyclist with leg fractures developed compartment syndrome which the trust admitted it treated too late, so his right leg had to be amputated below the knee. Liability was admitted and the court assessed damages at £4,676,442 covering lifelong prosthetics, care, adapted housing and lost earnings.
Where a hospital admits that quicker treatment of compartment syndrome would have saved a limb, the case becomes about valuing lifelong needs, and prosthetics, accommodation and care can each run to six or seven figures for a young claimant.
Claimant succeeded
[2022] EWHC 1171 (QB)·2022·Liability decided at trial
Ms Pickering, who had atrial fibrillation, attended A&E with a cold, white leg; doctors diagnosed a resolved ischaemic event and sent her home on aspirin without heparin or a warning about her stroke risk. She had a major stroke 67 hours later, and the court found that anticoagulation would have prevented it.
A transient blockage in a limb can signal a clot from the heart, and discharging such a patient without anticoagulation or advice was admitted to be negligent. The case turned on causation, with the court accepting expert evidence that heparin would have stopped the clot progressing.
Claim failed
[2022] EWHC 949 (QB)·2022·Liability decided at trial
A former lorry driver with a history of pulmonary embolism attended A&E and clinics in 2015 with chest pain and calf symptoms; the Trust admitted it should have done a Wells score and imaging at the first visit. The judge found he did not actually have a clot on that date and that the later reduction of his apixaban was not negligent, so the claim failed.
An admitted failure to investigate only leads to compensation if the investigation would have found something. Normal D-dimer results were decisive evidence against a missed clot.
Claim failed
[2022] EWHC 148 (QB)·2022·Liability decided at trial
A 29-year-old with sudden facial droop, speech problems and arm weakness was told by a junior A&E doctor she had migraine and was not referred to the TIA clinic, which the Trust admitted was a breach. Ritchie J found her March symptoms were in fact hemiplegic migraine, not mini-strokes, so the missed referral did not cause her later stroke.
Admitted breach of duty is not enough; the claimant must prove the correct pathway would have prevented the injury. Detailed findings about the exact sequence of symptoms decided this case.
Claimant succeeded
[2021] EWHC 169 (QB)·2021·Liability decided at trial
Mrs Davies was admitted to Wexham Park Hospital with pneumococcal meningitis; the trust admitted intravenous antibiotics should have started by 10.40 but were not given until 13.20, and she died two days later. After a causation trial the judge found she would probably have survived with timely antibiotics.
In sepsis and meningitis claims a delay of even a few hours in giving IV antibiotics can be negligent, and the key dispute is often whether the delay changed the outcome. Here the family succeeded, with damages already agreed.
Claimant succeeded£40,000
[2020] EWHC 2914 (QB)·2020·Liability and damages decided at trial
Ms Leach, alone at home with a brain haemorrhage, waited nearly two hours for an ambulance, of which the trust admitted 31 minutes was negligent delay; she went on to develop PTSD. The judge held that the negligent delay made a material contribution to her PTSD, that PTSD cannot be apportioned, and awarded the agreed £40,000.
Where a negligent ambulance delay materially contributes to a psychiatric injury like PTSD, the trust is liable for the whole injury and cannot reduce damages by arguing only part of the wait was its fault.
Mixed outcome
[2020] EWHC 1504 (QB)·2020·Liability decided at trial
A baby born breech by caesarean should have had a hip ultrasound within six weeks, but the appointment was not arranged until nine weeks and, after rescheduling, the scan at 17 weeks showed hip dysplasia in both hips, needing surgery. The Trust admitted breach but, shortly before trial, sought to blame the mother's missed appointment; the judge refused the late amendment.
Babies born breech need a timely hip scan, and a trust's failure to arrange one within its own protocol was admitted as negligent. Defendants cannot raise new causation arguments on the eve of trial without good reason.
Claimant succeeded£271,901
[2019] EWHC 980 (QB)·2019·Damages assessed at trial
The baby died in the womb before induction and the mother had to labour for 18 hours to deliver her stillborn daughter; the Trust admitted negligence. Martin Spencer J found she had a genuine, continuing psychiatric illness and awarded £271,901 in total.
After a negligent stillbirth the main claim is usually the mother's psychiatric injury and its financial consequences, such as lost earnings and treatment. Awards can be substantial but the court scrutinises the recovery prognosis closely, and the parties' valuations here were very far apart.
Mixed outcome
[2019] EWHC 1276 (QB)·2019·Liability decided at trial
Mrs Arksey attended Addenbrooke's with a warning bleed from a brain aneurysm but was discharged without a CT scan and suffered a catastrophic re-bleed the next day. The court held she had not proved that admitting her would have avoided the re-bleed, though she succeeded on an admitted delay in fitting a shunt for hydrocephalus.
Proving breach of duty in A&E is only half the battle; the claimant must also show that the correct treatment would have prevented the injury in time, which failed here for the main allegation.
Claimant succeeded
[2019] EWHC 283 (QB)·2019·Liability decided at trial
A woman with a previous pulmonary embolism saw her GP with chest pain and breathlessness and was diagnosed with a strained muscle; she died the next morning. The GP admitted he should have referred her to hospital, and Stewart J found she would on the clear balance of probabilities have survived with anticoagulation and monitoring.
Chest pain and breathlessness in someone with a past clot is a red flag needing same-day hospital referral. Where survival chances on admission would have been very high, the court will find the death was caused by the failure to refer.
Claimant succeeded£75,000
[2018] EWHC 3281 (QB)·2018·Liability decided at trial
Mr Bolton, 77, was brought to A&E by ambulance in respiratory failure and distress; after nebulised treatment he improved and the A&E doctor sent him home with antibiotics, without properly considering the paramedic and triage records. He collapsed at home hours later with an obstructed airway and died; the judge found he should have been admitted and awarded the agreed £75,000.
An A&E doctor must take account of the full picture, including paramedic and triage records, before discharging a patient who arrived in respiratory failure. Improvement after treatment does not make discharge safe if the underlying cause has not been identified.
Claimant succeeded£68,742
[2017] EWHC 863 (QB)·2017·Damages assessed at trial
Swabs taken after childbirth showed chlamydia but neither the patient nor her GP was told, and it went untreated for about a year; she suffered repeated pain and an ectopic pregnancy requiring removal of a fallopian tube. The trust admitted breach; the court accepted the ectopic pregnancy and a period of pain disorder were caused by the negligence but rejected the claim that her later chronic widespread pain was.
Failing to pass on an abnormal test result is a clear breach, but the claimant still has to prove which later problems flowed from it. Long-term pain conditions are hard to attribute to a delayed diagnosis.
Settlement approved£50,000
[2016] EWHC 500 (QB)·2016·Settlement approved by the court
The Trust admitted it negligently failed to diagnose the claimant's torn aorta for 20 days, but disputed that this caused his later stroke; the claimant accepted a £50,000 offer just before trial, months after it had expired. This ruling decides who pays the legal costs, applying the normal rules so the claimant pays the defendant's costs for the period after the offer lapsed.
Accepting a settlement offer late can cost a claimant heavily in legal costs even when negligence is admitted. A missed aortic dissection was accepted as negligent, but the disputed stroke was never proved.
Claimant succeeded
[2016] EWHC 407 (QB)·2016·Liability decided at trial
A GP who fell downstairs and was found vomiting and confused was admitted to Manchester Royal Infirmary A&E at about 6.52 am in December 2007, but his CT head scan was not done until 1.12 pm. The court found the scan should have been performed by about 10 am and that the delay was negligent.
A patient with a head injury and reduced consciousness needs a CT scan urgently; an unexplained delay of several hours in A&E can amount to negligence.
Claim failed
[2015] EWHC 1311 (QB)·2015·Liability decided at trial
Mr Choudhury called 999 twice in the early hours with dizziness, sweating and head pain; paramedics left him at home both times, he collapsed with a stroke and lay unattended for over eight hours, and at hospital his CT scan was wrongly read as normal and aspirin was delayed. Both defendants admitted these breaches, but the judge found the claimant could not prove that earlier treatment would have prevented the deterioration that left him locked-in.
Admitted failings by an ambulance crew and hospital are not enough on their own; the claimant must prove that proper treatment would probably have avoided the injury. With rare, severe strokes the medical evidence on what treatment would have achieved can defeat the claim.
Claim failed
[2015] EWHC 440 (QB)·2015·Liability decided at trial
A man with a bone disorder was admitted with leg pain, given antibiotics without blood cultures being taken first, and later discharged; weeks later he returned with a spinal infection and became paraplegic. The court found basic failures (no cultures, no monitoring of inflammatory markers) but was not satisfied they caused the paralysis.
Proving a hospital made mistakes is not enough; the claimant must show those mistakes probably caused the injury. Infection cases often turn on whether earlier detection would have changed treatment.
Claim failed
[2015] EWHC 276 (QB)·2015·Liability decided at trial
A four-year-old with fever, headache and vomiting was seen at an out-of-hours walk-in centre on New Year's Day and sent home with advice to return if he did not improve; the next evening he was admitted with meningitis and was left severely disabled. The judge held the GP's management was within the range of acceptable practice and dismissed the claim.
A feverish child sent home with safety-netting advice is not automatically a negligent consultation; the court asks whether a reasonable GP could have acted the same way. Hindsight about a devastating outcome does not prove breach of duty.
Claimant succeeded
[2014] EWHC 3016 (QB)·2014·Damages assessed at trial
A woman who was already paralysed from a spinal condition developed severe pressure sores during a long hospital stay, and the Trust admitted that this was negligent. The judge decided how much the sores and their consequences had added to her care needs and assessed her damages.
Where a patient already has serious health needs, the hospital is only responsible for the extra needs its negligence causes. The Court of Appeal later sent the damages back to be worked out again on that narrower basis.
Claimant succeeded£522,379
[2014] EWHC 286 (QB)·2014·Liability and damages decided at trial
Ms Leigh dislocated her kneecap boarding a bus and was trapped in severe pain for about 50 minutes before an ambulance arrived; the trust admitted 17 minutes of that delay was negligent. The judge found the negligent delay made a material contribution to her PTSD, that her dissociative seizures were part of the PTSD, and assessed damages at £522,379 plus interest.
Even a short negligent ambulance delay can found a substantial claim where it materially contributes to a serious psychiatric injury. Damages can include lost earnings and pension where the injury ends the claimant's career.
Claimant succeeded£92,391
[2013] EWCA Civ 117·2013·Appeal decision
Mrs Thomas's bile duct was injured during keyhole gallbladder removal and the surgeon also failed to arrange fluid and kidney monitoring when she was readmitted unwell. The trial judge found both failures negligent and awarded £92,391; the Court of Appeal dismissed the surgeon's appeal.
Bile duct injury during gallbladder surgery is not automatically negligent, but a court can find negligence where the anatomy was recognised and the injury still occurred, and separately for inadequate monitoring afterwards.
Claimant succeeded
[2011] EWHC 13 (QB)·2011·Liability decided at trial
A fourteen-year-old with days of high fever, vomiting and lethargy was not admitted to hospital by her GP on the Saturday, and the out-of-hours doctor that night managed her by phone instead of visiting; by the time she reached A&E the next morning she deteriorated and suffered irreversible brain damage. The judge found both doctors liable but dismissed the claim against the hospital because it could not be proved when the damage occurred.
A GP who recognises a possible pneumonia in a seriously unwell child but defers investigation for two days, and an out-of-hours doctor who does not visit despite worrying symptoms, can both be held liable when earlier admission would have avoided the injury. A hospital's breach does not lead to liability unless the timing of the damage can be linked to it.