Secondary Victim Claims – Where Are We Now?

The Supreme Court decision in Paul v Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust [2024] UKSC 1 was eagerly anticipated because of the impact it was likely to have on claims arising in a clinical setting. What was not anticipated was that the Supreme Court would take the opportunity to look at how some of the other control mechanisms that apply in secondary victim claims have been interpreted and applied by the courts and consider whether those decisions were right.

As a result not only does the decision in Paul give an answer to a 30 year debate about whether secondary victim claims can be pursued in circumstances where the claimant has witnessed an event of injury or death caused by a failure by a medical professional to treat a loved one, but it also reviews and refines aspects of the control mechanisms more generally.