Ministers want to cap lawyers’ fees for NHS clinical negligence cases, in a bid to save £80m annually.
At the moment a lawyer can earn up to 10 times the amount their client receives in compensation in some cases, but after these changes the lawyer’s fee would reflect a percentage of the compensation received by the patient.
This is part of a cost-cutting Department of Health plan that Ministers are considering and there will be a formal consultation in the autumn, the BBC revealed.
In response MDDUS, a mutual defence organisation, chief executive Chris Kenny said: “Medical negligence awards are made for the benefit of harmed patients, not the profitability of the legal services industry.
“We welcome the government’s determination to cap wasteful costs and hope that their autumn proposals take the form of a practical, comprehensive action plan, capable of early implementation.”
