Tom Bourne-Arton

M v MSW
Tom acted for the Defendant in this personal injury claim arising out of an accident at work. Breach of duty was admitted. Causation and quantum remained in dispute. The Claimant claimed to have suffered cauda equina syndrome and resultant, permanent symptoms following an accident at work. The Claimant suffered a back injury which latently led (on the Claimant's case) to a diagnosis of cauda equina syndrome. The reported ongoing symptoms included erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence, back pain, leg pain, and serious exacerbation of psychological symptoms. These symptoms led to a chronic pain cycle. Expert evidence was required in the fields of: Engineering, Spinal Surgery, Psychology, Chronic Pain, and Urology. The claim was pleaded at just under £2.5 million and it settled at a JSM for just over £1million.

S v E
Tom acted for the Claimant in relation to his personal injury claim arising from an accident at work whereby he suffered amputation to all his digits in his dominant right hand. The Claimant had ongoing mechanical and phantom pains requiring chronic pain management. In addition the Claimant requires prosthetics for the rest of his life. The claim settled at a JSM for just short of £1.5 million.

Da Silva v TFL, 3 WLUK 316
Tom acted for the Claimant in relation to his personal injury claim arising from a road traffic accident, whereby the Claimant fell from his moped when it skidded on a worn manhole cover in the highway. The claim was brought under the Highways Act 1980. Judgment for the Claimant was found following a two day trial for agreed damages of £60,000.

Garey v OneTree Estates Ltd
Tom acted for the Defendant in this multi-track personal injury claim listed for a 5 day trial. The claim arose from an accident at work when the Claimant allegedly sustained injuries to her right arm and psychological injuries as a result of becoming trapped in a lift, and the lift then moving. The Claim was initially pleaded based on the Claimant being disabled and intimidated a high six figure claim. The Claimant alleged her right arm was effectively useless and since the accident she had agoraphobia. Liability, Causation, Quantum and Fundamental Dishonesty were all in issue for the trial. 8 days before trial the matter settled. Expert evidence from engineers, orthopaedic surgeons and psychiatrists were relied by both parties.

Allfree v CP Environmental Ltd
Tom acted for the Defendant in a claim pleaded at over £750,000 arising from an accident at work when the Claimant’s foot became trapped in a metal recycling machine, causing injuries to his right foot, including amputations of the Claimant’s big toe and second toe. Case settled at a JSM. Liability, Contributory Negligence, Causation and Quantum all remained in issue at the JSM. The case involved expert evidence in the fields of Orthopaedics, Psychiatry, Podiatry, and Prosthetics.

Thorne (by her litigation friend Mrs Vincent) v Griggs
Tom acted for the Claimant in this Personal Injury Claim that settled at a JSM for a lump sum of and a PPO. This settlement was subsequently approved by the Court. The Claimant was injured when as a pedestrian she was hit by the Defendant’s car. She sustained numerous and significant injuries including: dental Injuries, multiple fractures on her right side, a pulmonary contusion, a right pneumothorax, a head injury, a fractured left ankle, a fracture and soft tissue injury of the spine, an abdominal injury, psychiatric symptoms, multiple strokes leading to permanent brain damage, a perforated colon and ileum leading to the fitting of a stoma bag, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, and a tracheostomy. The strokes were caused by complications arising from her treatment in hospital where she suffered a series of brain infarcts leading to a series of strokes that caused brain damage. Expert evidence in seven areas of expertise was required including the main areas of contention: Neurology and Care.

Thomas v Rudolph
Tom acted for the Defendant in this Personal Injury Claim that was pleaded over £1.5 million and which settled at a JSM. The Claim arose from an accident at work when metal box pallets fell onto him. The Claimant sustained numerous injuries, including a left pneumothorax, lung contusions, multiple and bilateral rib fractures, a complex fracture to his right pelvis involving fractures of the sacrum at L4 and S2 and pubic rami, causing 1) a laceration of the right superior gluteal artery requiring life-saving surgery and embolization but resulting in wasting and weakness of the gluteal muscles, 2) damage to the lumbar-sacral nerves as a result of which the Claimant suffers pain and weakness in his right lower leg, abnormal sensations below the knee and foot drop, and 3) severe back pain, a transverse fracture of the left acetabulum, urinary tract problems, erectile dysfunction, sleep apnoea symptoms, PTSD and depressed mood. Between the parties there were reports from 17 experts.

Gallagher v Roadform
Tom acted for the Defendant in this Personal Injury Claim that arose out of an accident at work when a skip that was being moved by a crane fell and landed on the Claimant. The accident caused injuries including to the neck, back and knee. The extent and causation of the ongoing symptoms were both disputed. The expert Orthopaedic Evidence was starkly different such that based on the Defendant’s evidence the Counter-Schedule pleaded losses were just over £20,000 and on the Claimant’s evidence the Claimant pleaded his loss at over £1,450,000. The claim settled at a JSM.

Advantage Insurance Company Ltd v Latif & Ors
Successfully defending a permission to bring contempt of court proceedings against the First Defendant.

Elson v Stilgoe, EWCA Civ 193
Successfully acted for the Defendant/Respondent in an appeal, heard by the Court of Appeal, against the decision to dismiss the Claimant/Appellant’s claim for personal injuries, loss and damage in a road traffic accident.