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Contraceptive Claims: Magic chip?

Stephanie Prior reviews the legal implications of the Implanon contraceptive device ‘Recent controversy surrounding the implant has arisen as women have reported unwanted pregnancies and injury or scarring. The total number of women affected could be far higher.’Over the last 12 years, Implanon, the only subdermal contraceptive available in the UK, has been used by …
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Investment: Increase in protection for cash balances

Nick Leech and Andrew Sands outline recent developments in the protection of cash balances, and the impact for personal injury victims ‘The increase is welcome, but is not nearly enough to provide an adequate level of protection for those in receipt of substantial personal injury awards.’ Much of the economic and financial news over recent …
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Damages: Surveillance evidence

Simon Emslie investigates how insurers can strike back ‘The insurers took the view that the picture presented by these videos was so different from that presented at trial that the only inference that could be drawn was that the claimant had made a far better recovery than he had claimed and that he had deliberately …
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Costs: Concluded at trial

Paul Jones discusses when a 100% success fee applies ‘If a case settled less than 14 days before the date fixed for commencement of the trial, a 50% success fee would apply, but if the trial actually commenced, a 100% success fee would apply.’ Fixed success fees in RTA claims, accidents at work and industrial …
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Parental Rights: Whose baby is it anyway?

Susan Freeborn assesses the legal status of the fetus ‘The proposition to tackle is this: the fetus has a right to life against everyone in the world except its mother. The only person who may, with the law’s blessing, end the life of the fetus is the mother of the fetus.’ Why is it that …
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Life Expectancy: Calculation of multipliers

Richard Lodge reviews the court’s approach to applying Ogden Tables 1, 2 and 28 ‘Those involved in personal injury litigation will be aware that defendants routinely argue that Table 1 or 2 is the appropriate method for calculation of the life multiplier. This argument should not be assumed to be correct, however, and much depends …
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CPR: Timely delivery

Emma Hearn reports on service and Part 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules ‘Once a solicitor has indicated that he has instructions to accept service, the mentioning of the fax number on their letter heading means that service may be affected on them by fax. In this case neither of the firms of solicitors acting …
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Clinical Negligence: The Damages Act 1996

Julian Matthews looks at the latest authorities concerning the discount rate ‘The computation of continuing losses in clinical negligence and personal injury claims is entirely dependent upon the assessment of the multiplier. Traditionally the multiplier was assessed by the courts on the basis of precedent.’ In early November 2010 the Lord Chancellor announced a review …
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Costs: Recoverability

Paul Jones considers when predictable costs apply ‘If neither fixed predictable costs nor fixed small claims track costs applied, then the only remaining option was for reasonable costs on the standard basis to be payable.’ One of the central tenets of the proposed reforms to civil legal costs is that increased use of fixed costs …
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Right Of Way: Hazards of livestock

Simon Blackburn examines livestock owners’ legal responsibilities to the public ‘The defendant was liable for his negligence in not having properly considered the risk that his cattle posed to members of the public’ The case of McKaskie v Cameron (2009) serves as an illustration that defendants to personal injury claims are just as vulnerable when …
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