Firms To Watch: Product liability: claimant

Hausfeld & Co LLP offers a small but experienced health and safety team in the UK, led by Sarah Moore , which regularly works on high profile international matters.
Founded in 2021, the burgeoning product liability team at Pogust Goodhead (formerly PGMBM) specialises in high stakes, high profile group litigation, particularly those relating to diesel emissions and medical product liability claims. Tom Goodhead manages the team, which recently added Matthew Newbould from Irwin Mitchell.

Product liability: claimant in London

Hugh James

The team at Hugh James specialises in product liability work relating to medical devices and pharmaceutical drugs, with a number of skilled medical practitioners to call upon. Members of the practice also have significant experience recovering compensation for defective household products. Mark Harvey leads the Cardiff-based team with over 35 years of experience representing claimants, handling some if the most significant cases in the sector. He is supported by associates Pauline Roberts, Aidan Lloyd and Carlos Land.

Practice head(s):

Mark Harvey

Other key lawyers:

Carlos Land; Pauline Roberts; Aidan Lloyd

Testimonials

‘Pauline Roberts was amazing from day 1 she took me through every step of whatever was asked of me. I was a total novice, Pauline painstakingly explained legal wording, procedures, and possible outcomes. She did all this with ease and gave me confidence when I got overwhelmed by it all at times. I have nothing but admiration for this lovely lady.’

‘Aidan Lloyd has been my solicitor throughout the claims process. He has been approachable, knowledgeable and sensible throughout . Helping to guide me through unfamiliar territory whilst keeping the information clear and easy to understand. He gave me confidence in knowing who way to proceed and we achieved a more than acceptable end point.’

‘Major claimant players in the product liability field. Well resourced and structured team. Decades of experience within the team means that they are unafraid to take on the most challenging cases. Extremely skillful in driving group litigation forwards.’

‘Mark Harvey – Something of a legend in the product liability world. Runs enormous pieces of group litigation with aplomb. Excellent strategist. Drives major corporate defendants and their insurers into settling claims; achieves great results across the board. Bravely takes on technically complex and challenging cases and obtains fantastic results. A genuine pleasure to work with.’

‘Pauline Roberts – Vastly experienced in product liability and clinical negligence. Great at digging up data that defendants would rather was not found! Clients love her and she knows how to really engage with them and reassure them during all the ‘tricky’ points in a case.’

Work highlights

  • Advising a cohort of claimants pursuing claims for injuries as a result of defective intraocular lenses.

Irwin Mitchell

Irwin Mitchell‘s group actions and product liability team is pre-eminent in handling individual and group claims relating to defective products, including those with cross-border elements. The firm also has considerable experience in handling high-profile medical negligence claims. Tim Annett has particular expertise in claims related to defective medical devices while Sallie Booth is experienced handling group litigation. At the associate level, Catherine Slattery and Natalie Truman are both important figures handling defective products, abuse and clinical negligence.

Practice head(s):

Tim Annett; Sallie Booth; Clive Garner

Other key lawyers:

Catherine Slattery; Natalie Truman

Testimonials

‘Major player in the product liability field. Very well resourced and led. Able to deploy teams of lawyers to the big claims when required. Always pragmatic in their approach and consequently achieve realistic, quality outcomes for their many clients. Able to take on claims against the biggest corporates with the deepest pockets and achieve excellent results.’

‘Sallie Booth: Vastly experienced partner; highly respected by all in the product liability field. Despite her seniority still very much hands on with clients and they all seem to love her! As with many at her level a keen eye for strategy and how to bring multi-party litigation to a successful conclusion.’

‘Natalie Truman and the team have been outstanding in their sensitivity and understanding of a very personal issue with my case. They have always kept me up to date with how my case is proceeding and explained very clearly anything I have not understood.’

‘Tim Annett & Catherine Slattery have been extremely supportive and always ensured a great level of communication, which is very helpful.’

‘There is no firm which can match IM for experience in claimant PL claims save for perhaps Leigh Day. They have vast experience of group actions and highly complex claims whether through air accidents, medical devices or pharmaceuticals. They have the people and resources to take on large numbers of clients and to litigate against large corporations. At the same time there is a personal touch from the partners and fee earners involved.’

‘Sallie Booth – she is extremely experienced in this field with a very impressive track record on large scale group Product Liability claims. She is fierce when needed, with very sound judgment, and gets good results for her clients.’

‘Quite simply one of the best Claimant product liability teams in the UK. The team has excellent judgment and demonstrates sound common sense in case selection and tactics. This is one of the only firms capable of taking on the deep-pocketed Defendant teams in this hard fought area of law.’

‘Sallie Booth stands out for her commercial acumen and judgment. Tim Annett stands out for his compassion and understanding of his clients’ cases. Natalie Truman is a rising star.’

Key clients

Boeing 737 Max claims

Trans Vaginal Mesh Litigation

Lariam claims

Sorin heater-cooler claims

Nutribullet claims

Advanced Bionics cochler implant claims

Work highlights

  • Acting for all 4 UK-based families in claims arising from Boeing 737 Max crash in Ethiopia. Litigation is ongoing in the USA and has the potential to be one of the largest aviation disater claims in history.
  • Lead solicitors in the Trans-Vaginal Mesh litigation relating to claims against Johnson & Johnson for pelvic organ prolapse products
  • Representing individuals who have suffered injury due to alleged defective cochlear implants with claims against Advanced Bionics

Leigh Day

Leigh Day is an industry leader in matters of collective redress, acting for both individuals and groups. The team is also known for its work with diesel vehicle emissions, medical devices, pharmaceuticals and chemical products. Notably, the team has taken a leading role on the litigation of the ‘dieselgate’ vehicle emissions scandal. Team leader Bozena Michalowska-Howells specialises in complex group litigation, and is joint leader of the UK group action against Volkswagen and VW. Jill Paterson is an accompished personal injury lawyer and a passionate campaigner for consumer and patient rights. Other important names on the team are Thomas Jervis, Shazia Yamin and Thomas Jervis.

Practice head(s):

Bozena Michalowska

Other key lawyers:

Jill Paterson; Michelle Victor; Thomas Jervis; Tina Patel

Testimonials

‘The leading claimant product liability team by almost any metric, it is no coincidence that Leigh Day tend to be involved in the most significant cases and holding manufacturers to account over unsafe products. The defining factor of the team is that no stone will ever be left unturned and they will do everything possible to get the best result. That, combined with the compassion they bring to their work, makes this team special.

‘Thomas Jervis is internationally recognised in the field for his expertise in consumer law and product liability. He is extraordinarily thorough in his preparation for and knowledge of his case load and he combines this with a humble and approachable manner that makes him an absolute delight to work with. He is an outstanding team player and highly capable.’

‘The team is top class in its knowledge and experience relating to product liability. They are very innovative and are fully focused on delivering the best possible solutions for their clients.’

‘Shazia Yamin is incredibly personable, knowledgeable and experienced within the sector. She produces such a high standard of work – an exceptional lawyer.

‘Leigh Day are the leaders of this type of group litigation. They have developed a most impressive practice. They know how to take on the large institutions and win. They can’t be phased or bullied – they are relentless in the search for justice for their clients.’

‘Boz Michalowska is at the top of her game and a brilliant group action litigator. She never misses a point and pursue everything vigorously.

‘They are, without any doubt, the leading and best firm for claimants in the product liability field. They have more experience and better quality lawyers than any of their rivals.’

‘Extremely collaborative. As counsel, their work product and input on complex cases is of enormous value. They have a diverse team that is available at all hours, without complaint. Further, their ability to liaise with large client bases and manage expectations along the way, especially in the light of constantly changing circumstances, has always been impressive to me.’

‘Without doubt the best in the business for claimant product liability work. The entire team, from the partners down to the paralegals, is diligent, thorough, and responsive. They have a very collaborative working style and are great team players who are fun to work with.’

‘Shazia Yamin is exceptional and a fantastic asset to any team. She is very practical, with bags of common sense and excellent judgment.’

‘Jill Paterson is one of the best consumer products specialists in the country. She has acted for the claimants in a number of cases against my clients. She is a formidable opponent – who knows the law backwards – but who also understands the subtleties of strategy. She is highly effective. I have huge respect for her and her skills.’