Professional Negligence

Having engaged a professional to carry out services for you, it is reasonable to expect that work be undertaken to a professional standard.  Unfortunately, that is not always the case.

If a professional has been negligent and as a consequence financial loss has been suffered, we can help you bring a claim and or reach a negotiated settlement whether through arbitration, mediation or otherwise.

We are experienced in bringing claims against a variety of professionals. Our recent cases include:

  • Acting for a limited company in a claim against former accountants for inaccurate completion of Revenue Returns over many years leading to overpayment of corporation tax and in parallel proceedings against former solicitors for failure to commence proceedings against the accountants in time in respect of the earlier years.  The case settled at a round table meeting between solicitors, insurers and clients.
  • Acting for a private individual in a claim against former solicitors for failure to reserve right of way to land-locked industrial unit making the property inaccessible (on paper) and virtually unsaleable until matter resolved.  Settled by negotiation.
  • Acting for a private individual against former conveyancing solicitors who failed to include a provision in the sale contract requiring the seller and redeveloper of a property to do the work necessary in order to obtain a Building Control Certificate which meant that, when significant structural defects were identified, the buyer had no recourse to the seller.
  • Acting for private individuals in claim against architect for negligent design of domestic extension. The extension suffered from flooding. In the same case bringing claim against the builder for negligent workmanship. Case resolved at mediation only after the majority of the litigation process had been completed. The majority of the costs were recovered from the opponents.

We act in claims against lawyers, accountants, surveyors, architects and other professionals.

Sarah Payne is a member of the Professional Negligence Lawyers Association.