Practice Overview
Chris was called to the Bar in 2016. He became a tenant of Exchange Chambers in September 2017 following the successful completion of his common law pupillage with Chambers.
Chris is a specialist personal injury practitioner.
Chris has a strong multi-track practice and an established fast-track practice. Chris accepts instructions across all areas of personal injury work, including road traffic accident claims, occupier’s liability claims, and public liability claims. Chris regularly acts in cases of significant value, often representing Claimants who have suffered lifelong injury and compromise at work. Chris has appeared in the County Court and High Court and has extensive appellate experience.
Chris has recently been appointed to the prestigious Attorney General’s Regional C Panel (to run from March 2023).
Recent multi-track instructions include the following (updated in January 2023):
- An ongoing claim involving a significant spinal injury, with the claim pleaded up to £200,000 (and likely to increase);
- A successful claim involving a serious injury to a foot, with the claim being settled for more than £30,000 (August 2022);
- A successful claim involving a serious fracture injury to an ankle, which successfully settled for £80,000 (around May 2022);
- A successful claim involving a significant injury to the knee, which settled for over £100,000 in damages and costs (March 2022).
Chris believes strongly that people who have been injured should have access to effective representation. For more information about Chris’s experience in representing Claimants, please see the ‘Personal Injury’ tab.
Chris frequently assists with defending claims brought against insurers and local authorities. For more information about Chris’s experience in representing Defendants, please see the ‘Personal Injury: Defence’ tab.
Chris is incredibly client-focused and approachable and understands the importance of a strong relationship with his clients and instructing solicitors. He prides himself on quick turnaround of papers, and is happy to provide advice on an informal basis.
Recent cases
December 2022: Chris successfully represented a retired police officer who suffered a serious burn injury after an accident at a hotel. After a one-day trial in Hull County Court, Chris successfully proved that the tour operator was to blame and the Claimant was awarded almost £20,000 for their damages and costs.
August 2022: Chris successfully represented a veterinarian who was badly injured after falling into a manhole. The Defendant agreed to settle the claim before trial and pay the Claimant £30,500 on account of his damages.
May 2022: Chris successfully represented a lady who was injured after a slipping accident at a supermarket. The Defendant agreed to settle the case and pay the Claimant £80,000 on account of her damages.
March 2022: Chris successfully represented an electrician who made a high-value claim after being injured in an accident at work. The claim was complex and involved difficult issues of vicarious liability. With careful preparation of the case from Chris and his experienced solicitors, the Defendant agreed to settle the case and pay the Claimant over £100,000 for his damages and costs.
February 2022: Chris acted for the successful Claimant in the reported case of Melloy & Anor v UK Insurance Ltd [2022] EW Misc 4 (CC) (http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/Misc/2022/4.html). The case was an important clarification of the costs to be awarded where more than one Claimant brings a fixed costs claim following a road traffic accident using a single claim form.
November 2021: Chris successfully represented a lady who suffered a serious injury to her leg after falling into a broken manhole. The water company suggested that they did not need to regularly check manholes to make sure they were safe. Chris proved that the water company should have done more and the Claimant was awarded more than £24,000 in damages and costs.
August 2021: Chris successfully represented a national chain of cinemas who had been sued after a fall in a cinema in Cardiff. Chris persuaded the Judge that the company had done all that they reasonably could to keep the Claimant safe. The Judge agreed that the Defendant was not liable and the claim was dismissed.
July 2021: Chris acted for a highways authority who were defending a fast-track Highways Act claim brought by a litigant-in-person. The claim involved difficult issues of fact and law (in particular, whether a Claimant needs a Part 35-compliant medical report to prove the nature and extent of an injury). The Judge agreed that the claim should be dismissed in full.
June 2021: Chris successfully represented a Claimant who had been injured in an accident on a mini-roundabout. Chris proved that the Defendant driver was wholly to blame and the Judge allowed the claim in full. The Claimant beat a Part 36 offer and was awarded almost £14,000 in damages and costs.
May 2021: Chris successfully represented a Claimant who had been injured in an accident in a warehouse. Chris proved not only that the Claimant’s employer had caused the accident, but also that they had lied about the accident circumstances. Chris persuaded the Judge that the conduct of the Defendant was such that the Claimant should recover a significant award of indemnity costs.
April 2021: Chris successfully represented a prison officer who had been injured an an accident whilst using exercise equipment provided to him by his employer. The claim largely turned on a point of law (that is, whether the Defendant had the burden of showing that the accident could have avoided if more regular checks were made). The Claimant was successful and awarded more than £14,000 in damages and costs.
March 2021: Chris represented a Claimant who had been stuck with a needle whilst working in a care home. The Defendant had argued that a needle-stick injury was so insignificant that no damages should be paid. Chris successfully persuaded the Judge that the Defendant was wrong, and a needle-stick injury was something which was sufficiently injurious to result in liability in tort.
