Children injured by NHS can claim damages for lifetime lost earnings, court rules

The decision from the Supreme Court, on the case of a child who sustained a brain injury at birth in 2015, could have significant cost implications for the NHS.

The Supreme Court has ruled that children can receive damages for the years of their life that will be lost because of medical negligence, overturning a 1981 Court of Appeal judgment that stated children cannot receive such damages.

The Supreme Court has allowed the claimant’s appeal and overruled previous case law to permit child claimants whose life expectancy has been reduced by alleged negligence to recover damages for future loss of earnings (‘lost years’ claims).

The Supreme Court has ruled that children injured through NHS negligence can claim damages for the full working life they would likely have had, not just for earnings lost during their reduced life expectancy.

The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom has delivered an important decision that will affect families bringing serious medical negligence claims on behalf of children, ruling that children whose life expectancy is shortened due to negligence can now claim compensation for the income they would likely have earned during the years of life they have lost.