Back in September I commented on a news story in the Independent in a post mediation is
Are claimants or defendants responsible for the low take up of mediation in clinical negligence?
the only alternative in clinical negligence claims. It was in response to the report that ministers had been condemned for failing to implement new proposals on how to handle clinical negligence claims. I made my views clear about the ways in which mediation suited this type of case and what mediators can add to the dispute resolution process.
I attended the ADR Group’s annual conference in Oxford yesterday and it was clear that there is still considerable dismay at the relatively low take up of mediation in the field of clinical negligence. Colin Stutt, Head of Funding at the Legal Services Commission, attended the conference and fielded a number of questions on the apparent failure of the NHS Litigation Authority to instruct its solicitors to use mediation. What does the LSC propose to do and why doesn’t it make use of mediation and other ADR procedures a condition for entitlement to legal aid?
This low take up is despite the growth in personal injury mediation which has seen the appearance in the market place of Trust Mediation, a mediation provider that only deals with personal injury matters. There was nobody from the NHSLA present so I do not know what their response to the question is.
What is your experience of mediation in clinical negligence cases? Are claimants or defendants proposing mediation? If not why not? Are joint settlement meetings always a better alternative? If you are an injured party or an NHS Trust what have your solicitors advised you about mediation?
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