David has over 15 years of experience in all areas of personal injury work. He is instructed in fatal accident claims, catastrophic and serious injury claims (TBI, spinal, amputation), chronic pain, and psychiatric injury cases. His cases often include marshalling the evidence from multiple expert disciplines and the drafting of detailed Schedules and Counter-Schedules. He is also instructed in, and enjoys, fighting liability trials in employers’ liability, public liability and RTA claims.

GB v Garden Furniture Global Ltd 

Led by Darryl Allen K.C. Acting for an employee falling 15ft and striking objects during his fall. Orthopaedic injuries and moderate severe TBI. High value care and deputyship fees claimed but with capacity in issue. Settled for £2 million.   

X v Haven Insurance & Others 

Led by Darryl Allen K.C. Acting for the motorcyclist claimant in a severe TBI case. High value care, earnings and support worker claims. Involving experts in neurology, neuropsychiatry, neuropsychology, care, endocrinology, plastics and ophthalmology. Settled for £2.4 million.  

Prentice v Specialist Electrical Solutions Ltd 

Acting for the claimant employee who suffered the traumatic amputation of his right dominant thumb when the digger he was operating overturned. The injury resulted in a right big toe amputation to right thumb transfer surgery, and consequent need for reconstruction and cosmetic surgery to the thumb, and orthotics for pain and stabilisation of the right foot. Favourable settlement achieved at JSM.  

Mills v ERS 

Acting for the defendant insurer. Liability was admitted for an RTA causing multiple lower-limb fractures and severe psychiatric injury after the claimant had been stuck in her burning vehicle. High value career progression loss of earnings, treatment and accommodation claim advanced totalling over £3.3m. David advised throughout, particularly on video surveillance evidence, and attended JSM. Settled at £750,000. 

Archer v West Berkshire Council  

Acting for the defendant at trial in a claim for psychiatric injury damages in negligence and under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, brought by a teacher against the local authority and former headteacher. Liability was denied throughout. On day 4, after a full trial of the evidence and just prior to submissions, the claimant withdrew the claim. 

Moyo v DHL / Saleh v DHL 

Acting for the defendant at trial in a liability disputed RTA claim. The defendant’s HGV suffered a tyre blowout on the M1 resulting in multiple accidents as following traffic hit the debris. It was open to the court to infer negligence as a result of unsafe condition of or defect in the HGV. Despite that, the Moyo claim was defeated at trial on the basis of a reasonable system of inspection of the tyres. Separate proceedings in the Saleh claim were then discontinued.   

Rogers v EMR 

Ongoing, acting for the defendant employer in a liability admitted claim in which the claimant sustained a fractured elbow leading to surgery, the non-negligent complication of which is alleged to have been an ulna nerve injury rendering the arm useless, akin to the loss of a limb. 

David is regularly instructed in all areas of clinical negligence work for claimants and defendants, with recent cases including missed or delayed diagnoses (particularly CES and cord compression), inadequate consenting, negligent surgery, and birth injuries.

SD v Homerton University Hospital NHSFT 

Acting for the defendant Trust in a Fatal Accident Act claim following the missed diagnosis of a subdural empyema leading to the death of a young father. The central quantum dispute concerned financial dependency arising from a complicated projected career progression. Pleaded at £2.367 million but settled at around one third of that sum at JSM.  

AO v King’s College Hospital NHSFT 

Acting for the defendant Trust in a missed diagnosis case resulting in irreversible bowel ischaemia for a claimant with pre-existing gastric bypass and fibromyalgia. The central causation/quantum dispute concerned life expectancy, rheumatological, upper GI, and gastroenterologist expert opinion about the claimant’s but for position. Pleaded at over £2.3m, settled on very favourable terms at JSM. 

EJH v Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 

Acting for the defendant Trust in liability admitted claim over negligent late diagnosis of an ano-rectal malformation in a new-born in March 1997. The central dispute was the causation defence that after October 1997 and to date the claimant had received the same treatment pathway had the condition been diagnosed in a timely fashion. Consultant Paediatric Surgeon and care expert evidence in dispute. Claim was pleaded at £1.5 million plus PPOs of £24,711 (£2.7 million lump sum). Favourable settlement without PPOs. 

JJ v Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (1) and TPK (2) 

Acting for the second defendant care home in a claim being managed within a group of claims in the High Court arising out of the discharge of NHS patients into care homes at the outset of the Covid 19 pandemic in the UK. Various claimants alleging negligence on the part of the SoS HSC for failing to provide adequate guidance to care homes concerning the admission of asymptomatic residents, and use of PPE. Allegations of negligence concerning isolation of patients, infection control and PPE against the care homes directly. Complicated breach and causation arguments (in particular, the basis on which causation in Covid 19 injury claims might possibly be established, simple ‘but for’, material contribution, or material increase in risk. Claims/defences ongoing.  

BD v HD 

Acting on behalf of the defendant GP in a claim arising from a failure to diagnose Giant Cell Arteritis leading to complete loss of vision in that eye. Regrettably, the claimant was already blind in her other eye and thus rendered totally blind. Claims. for alternative accommodation and increased care regime. Compromised very favourably at JSM. 

DM v St Georges University Hospital NHSFT 

Acting for the defendant Trust denying liability in an ongoing claim arising out of the alleged inappropriate treatment course and delayed major spinal reconstruction surgery.  

MM v Royal Free Hospital 

Acting for the defendant Trust denying liability in an ongoing claim arising out of the alleged delayed and inappropriate management of occlusion in the lower limb resulting in a below-knee amputation.  

Recent and ongoing instructions for Claimants include: 

M v S L Hospital.  

Failure to obtain informed consent for a salpingo-oophorectomy and failures in post-operative care 

M v P Hospitals Trust.  

Fatal clinical negligence claim resulting from negligent management of ulcerative colitis and ultimately a necrotic bowel condition. 

C v  E L Hospital NHS Trust.  

Fatal clinical negligence claim resulting from delayed diagnosis of lung carcinoma. 

G v I C Healthcare NHS Trust.  

Claim arising from the negligent failure to apply banding to the pulmonary artery and then a Fontan procedure in respect of a child born with congenital heart disease. The negligence has led to a drastically reduced quality of life and a reduced life expectancy. 

David has a keen interest in disciplinary and regulatory work, in particular after gaining experience in financial services regulation and proceedings before the Regulatory Decisions Committee as a legal assistant in the Enforcement Division of the Financial Services Authority.

David acts for both claimants and defendants in claims arising from accidents which have occurred overseas. In particular, he has experience in personal injury and fatal accident cases arising out of road traffic accidents and public liability accidents in Europe. His defendant clients include tour-operators, airline and airport companies, and major insurers.

• MA, King’s College London.
• LLM, King’s College London.
• CPE, University of Westminster (Distinction).
• BVC, Inns of Court School of Law (Distinction, Middle Temple Certificate of Honour).

• PIBA.
• AVMA.
• South Eastern Circuit.

Interests: theatre, history, political biography, wine, running. Actuality: mostly only running after my two children.