Joel Donovan KC > Cloisters > London, England > Barrister Profile
Cloisters Offices
1 PUMP COURT, TEMPLE
LONDON
EC4Y 7AA
England
- Set Profile
- Go to...
Joel Donovan KC
Work Department
Clinical negligence; personal injury; professional negligence; professional regulation.
Position
Barrister practising mainly in complex high-value clinical negligence and PI, including grave birth injury and brain/spinal cord lesions. Accepts public access. Commended in Chambers UK 2016 for both clinical negligence and personal injury:
“..phenomenally intelligent and a real pleasure to work with.” “.. incredible in terms of his ability to absorb folders of information and drill down to the key issues. He makes the instructing solicitor’s job so much easier. He combines being calm, sensible and unflappable with a determined desire to win.”
“…a fantastic strategist, with an ability to see all the complexities of a case before they actually play out in court.”
Recent cases include key Supreme Court decision of Mohamud v Morrisons [2016] AC 677 (‘close connection’ test for vicarious liability); M v A Highway Authority (liability settlement arising from catastrophic motorcycle vs. pothole collision); Z v K (six-figure approved settlement of challenging catastrophic injury claim arising from drunken joyriding); D v P NHS Trust (seven-figure lump sum/PP approved settlement arising from delayed spinal immobilisation, leading to quadriplegia); Y v L NHS Trust (ongoing high-value claim arising from alleged contamination of spinal anaesthetic causing arachnoiditis); W v K (seven-figure lump sum/PP approved settlement in GP claim arising from devastating subarachnoid haemorrhage); X v Y (high-value wrongful birth case for mother of child with severe global developmental delay); Z v A Trust (cerebral palsy: seven-figure lump sum/PP approved settlement); and several ongoing high-value claims involving delayed recognition/treatment of cauda equina syndrome.
Career
Former solicitor; called 1991; QC 2011. Lead advocacy tutor, Lincoln’s Inn. Appointed arbitrator under MIB Untraced Drivers’ and PIcARBS schemes.
Languages
Fluent French; working Spanish.
Memberships
PNBA; PIBA; AvMA; APIL; Bar Pro Bono Unit panel.
Education
Durham University.
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > Clinical negligence
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 4Joel Donovan KC –Cloisters ‘Hugely experienced and one of the greats in this field. Very safe pair of hands and brilliant manner with clients. Clearly well respected by his opponents and the judiciary when on his feet’
Cloisters are ‘an excellent chambers for clinical negligence work‘, with ‘an excellent reputation with significant strength in depth‘. Simon Taylor KC ‘s priorv experience as a doctor supports his expertise in difficult medical issues; Joel Donovan KC has particular experience with severe brain injury and cauda equina cases. William Latimer-Sayer KC is recommended for ‘quantum advice of the highest standard’, acting on complex, high-value matters. Notably, he recently led junior Sarah Fraser Butlin KC in HMA v Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, a case concerning a 13 year old boy who sustained a severe brain injury following surgery, leading to cerebral palsy and learning difficulties – a case involving disputed liability and complex quantum concerns. Junior Chesca Lord specialises in quantum-only cases, including those involving traumatic brain injuries.
London Bar > Personal injury, industrial disease and insurance fraud
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 4Joel Donovan KC –Cloisters ‘Joel has a talent for cutting through the complexities of a case and making the picture appear clear and straightforward.’