Ms Abigail Stamp > Deka Chambers > London, England > Barrister Profile

Ms Abigail Stamp

0207 832 0500 astamp@dekachambers.com

Work Department

Personal Injury, Clinical Negligence, Inquests

Position

Abigail Stamp specialises in clinical negligence, personal injury and inquests.

She represents both Claimants and Defendants. Her work is exclusively Multi-Track or issued in the High Court. Solicitors comment favourably on her pragmatic and client friendly approach together with her attention to detail and ability to understand complex medical issues.

Career

Called 2004
Abigail specialises in clinical negligence, personal injury and inquests. She represents both Claimants and Defendants.Her work is exclusively Multi-Track or issued in the High Court. She is widely acknowledged as a Leading Junior in her field, evidenced by consistent recommendations in both the Legal 500 and Chambers UK since 2013. Solicitors comment favourably on her pragmatic and client friendly approach together with her attention to detail and ability to understand complex medical issues.
Clinical Negligence

Abigail is vastly experienced in this field. She is tactically aware and very familiar with the procedural regime having dealt with numerous cases involving issues such as non disclosure of records, non service of a claim form, limitation arguments, applications to resile from admissions and mediation. Cases include those arising out of:

• Poor management of labour resulting in brain injury, Erb’s palsy, still birth and psychiatric injury to the mother. She has also acted in a case involving the misdiagnosis of an ectopic pregnancy resulting in the termination of a healthy embryo.
• Surgical negligence including claims relating to substandard orthopaedic, obstetric, general  and neuro surgery.
• Anaesthetic negligence including mishaps resulting in death and blindness.
• Delays in diagnosis including those relating to appendicitis, peritonitis, cancer, glaucoma, cauda equina and stroke.  Also cases in which an organic condition has been misdiagnosed as a psychiatric presentation.
• Nursing negligence including falls, pressure sores and a self-inflicted bowel perforation as a result of inadequate training in the use of an anal irrigation system.
• G.P. negligence including the delayed diagnosis of cancer, substandard performance of minor surgery, and failures to refer patients, such as those with severe infections or recurrent colitis, into secondary care.
• Poor performance of cosmetic surgery including facial peels, breast implants, rhinoplasty and labiaplasty.
• Systemic failings such as mixed up biometry results prior to cataract surgery, failure to recall following adverse x-ray  or ECG findings, protracted delays in the provision of treatment or the making of tertiary referrals.
• Fatal accident cases or claims under Article 2 ECHR which arise out of suicide in circumstances where the deceased was a voluntary or compulsory in patient at the time of death.
• Secondary victim cases arising out of the witnesses of traumatic events in hospital or a care home.  Also a claim for nervous shock as a result of a Father witnessing the traumatic delivery of his child.

Personal Injury

Abigail’s cases range from those injuries arising out of road traffic accidents and accidents at work to fatal accidents and accidents abroad.

She also co-editor of the Occupier’s Liability and Defective Premises Chapter of APIL Personal Injury, Law Practice and Precedents. She has dealt with a number of CICA cases including those arising out of assaults resulting in brain injury and maximum or near maximum CICA awards. Her cases include those resulting in serious orthopaedic injuries or moderate brain injury.

Abigail is also frequently instructed on cases in which medical causation has been complex such as where the Claimant has developed additional complications or life threatening conditions during the course of the litigation and cases in which pre and post-accident drug use or behavioural difficulties have compounded the disabilities suffered. She has acted in cases involving injuries resulting in fibromyalgia, CRPS, chronic pain, chronic fatigue syndrome and somatoform disorder together with those involving allegations of fraud or exaggeration including those in which damaging surveillance evidence has been obtained.

Inquests

Abigail regularly represents bereaved families and employers at inquests arising out of accidents at work and road traffic accidents. She has also acted in a number of cases involving deaths in custody, hospitals or care homes including those where the deceased was either under Section, subject to deprivation of liberty safeguards, or where there was evidence of systemic failings. She has experience of a number of cases involving the suicide of patients who were or should have been under the care of the mental health team together with cases resulting in a verdict of neglect.

She is very familiar with inquest procedure, including those engaging Article 2 ECHR or requiring a jury, and is praised for her ability to deal with issues raised in a sensitive manner. Chambers UK [2016] commented, ‘Her inquest experience particularly focuses on proceedings investigating fatal events that may have breached the Right of Life under Article 2 ECHR… Recommended for inquest work and subsequent civil proceedings.‘

Memberships

• Personal Injury Bar Association
• Professional Negligence Bar Association
• Association of Personal Injury Lawyers

Education

University of Exeter LLB Law (Hons) First Class King’s College London MA Medical Law and Ethics