Clinical negligence: should the NHS consider a no-fault system?

Most people, I would argue, do not regularly think about the problems they encounter as having legal implications and consequences, and that they could possibly sue.

Even though some would argue that England has a compensation culture, I would argue that we do not. Taking any form of legal action is prohibitively expensive, time consuming and complex – and can be stressful. Legal aid funding is available only in limited circumstances. Also, if people do go to court, they are unlikely to see a windfall. In England, we do not have juries in civil matters as a general rule and the judge awards any compensation. The litigious big-award image of the US courtroom does not filter through to our courts and civil procedures.

A key and indeterminable issue, given the paucity of research, is whether this line of public thinking about the law changes when they or their loved ones suffer clinical negligence and need to access the civil justice system. Given there are lots of variables to consider, this is difficult to answer and we need more research to get an informed picture.