Proof Cerebral Palsy Was Avoidable

CAUSATION

Once we have proved what should have been done we must prove that if it had been done the cerebral palsy would have been avoided (or extent reduced).

The Court does not require us to prove that inevitably the injury would have been avoided. The Court asks what is the percentage chance of the injury having been avoided. 

If we can prove that there was more than a 50% chance of avoiding the injury we will win the claim.

If however we can only show that the chances of avoiding the injury with proper care were 50% or less the Court will assume that the injury would have been sustained even if proper care had been given.

This approach to causation is not perfect however is they way in which the Courts currently decide whether to award compensation.

The legal use of probabilities is very different from the scientific use of probabilities. It is one of your legal team's most important roles to ensure that the medical experts understand the legal burden of proof and that the experts views are expressed in clear terms. This is sometimes not easy for a medical expert whose scientific background has a very different approach to assessing how different treatment might give different results.