Health and safety solicitors
Faced with the
ever-increasing burden of legislation, meeting a company’s health
and safety requirements is a daunting task for directors and
managers.
Health and safety lawyers
Our specialist health and safety
solicitors have advised across a full spectrum of health and safety
cases.
Please read about:
Health and safety at work
Health and safety breach litigation
can have grave consequences. Average fines increase year on year
and are likely to increase exponentially in cases arising from
deaths in the workplace. Reputation and share price damage is also
a significant issue for our clients. Our lawyers understand this
context and are well practised in ensuring that businesses and
individuals are properly defended from all of these potential
threats.
Health and safety breach
Operating throughout England and
Wales, our health and safety lawyers have extensive experience in
diverse sectors including construction, transport, farming,
quarrying, leisure and residential care.
We also advise on preventative
measures such as the drafting of health and safety documentation or
explanation of the application of new legislation on particular
business sectors.
We represent clients throughout any
investigation process, during any ancillary proceedings (such as
inquests), and where necessary during court proceedings at all
court levels.
When accidents do occur it is often
vital that the right choices are made straight away. We provide a
First Response service which includes 24 hour emergency telephone
legal advice, 365 days a year. We are able to deploy a lawyer on
site in immediate response to a critical incident.
Health and safety law – advice on
prevention
It is vital that an organisation
has the correct health and safety policies in place. Our health and
safety solicitors can provide you with advice on all aspects of
health and safety law to ensure that you have the proper policies
in place to protect your organisation from a health and safety
breach. We can provide the following services:
- provision of ad hoc or regular
updating advice as to the sufficiency of health and safety
documentation.
- advice on the applicability of new
law to your business.
- advice on health and safety
management structures and chains of responsibility.
If required, we can also provide
training on health and safety law and the consequences of a health
and safety breach.
Health and safety defence
A health and safety breach can have
a detrimental effect on your business. Our health and safety
solicitors have a wealth of experience in health and safety law
matters. We are well practised in ensuring that businesses and
individuals are properly defended from all of the potential threats
of a health and safety breach. We can provide the following
services:
- First
Response
Immediate deployment on site when serious
accidents occur. Responsive focused strategic planning and action
to take the matter forward and resolve it with least damage to your
business.
- Investigation
support
Representation throughout the interview
process. Often including the preparation of detailed
statements.
- Averting
prosecution
Making representations to the prosecutor with a view to averting
prosecution entirely or limiting its scope.
- Ancillary
proceedings
Representation of companies and key individuals as interested
persons during inquests and coroners’ inquiries and public
enquiries.
- Defence at
court
- of corporate defendant
- of key individuals
- of managers (S.7 & 37)
- Support following
proceedings
- press relations/management
- re-drafting of documentation
- linked services from other specialist teams such as:
employment and defendant insurance litigation
Corporate manslaughter
solicitors
The Corporate Manslaughter and
Corporate Homicide Act 2007, which came into force on 6 April 2008,
means that companies and organisations can be found guilty of
corporate manslaughter as a consequence of significant management
failures resulting in a gross breach of a duty of care.
If your organisation has been
accused of corporate manslaughter it is essential to take legal
advice as early as possible. Our health and safety solicitors have
the experience and skills needed to best advise you on your
options. We can assist you throughout the investigation from the
day of the incident until the investigation reaches its
conclusion.
Hugh James health and safety
experience
We deal with the full spectrum of
health and safety matters throughout England and Wales.
Recent cases include:
- a multiple fatality Legionnaires
outbreak at a leading UK hotel.
- a multiple fatality carbon
monoxide poisoning.
- multiple deaths of elderly
residents at a care home.
- matters involving specialist
legislation such as the quarry regulations.
- a public enquiry arising from a
notorious food safety incident.
- a current investigation conducted
under the new Corporate Manslaughter Act.
- current Section 7 and 37
prosecutions of individual managers and directors.