Leading solicitors dealing with Fibromyalgia, CRPS and Chronic Pain litigation.

All of our fully qualified solicitors here have expertise dealing with the minefield that such litigation entails. Post traumatic Fibromyalgia litigation is necessarily complex because Fibromyalgia remains a controversial condition whose aetiology is still not fully understood. There remains a significant body of medical opinion whom the insurance industry calls upon to defend these claims by asserting that either the condition does not exist and that clinical causation cannot be made out, or that, even if in principle Fibromyalgia does exist, the chronic pain was triggered by stressors other than the incident or that it developed constitutionally. Issues of credibility with regard to Fibromyalgia, CRPS and chronic pain litigation generally play a significant role in litigation, as the extent of the claimant`s disability cannot be verified independently (through blood tests or MRI scans etc.), meaning that the court is entirely reliant upon the Claimants self-reporting of symptoms. Such litigation often generates heat and claimants are routinely put under covert surveillance, increasing the risk to credibility even further. Expertise in handling such claims is therefore of paramount importance.

With 17 years` experience in this field, Brian Barr Solicitors today commandeers a team of fully qualified solicitors, each of whom have the high level professionalism, passion and dedication to see each and every case through to the finish, whilst delivering high customer value, sensitivity and care. Many of our clients have initially been represented elsewhere and have had their claims determined as low value. They subsequently instruct Brian Barr Solicitors and obtain many more times the amount than they had initially won.

Such was the case with Ms Slater whose claim was initially valued at £10,000, but managed to obtain £200,000 with Brian Barr; or AN whose claim had been valued at £32,500, and obtained £162,500 with our firm. These figures are achieved through dedication and expertise across the entire team and they are certainly what sets us apart from all other firms.

Our expertise is clearly reflected in our 97% success rate achieved last year. Additionally, our glowing customer feedback is just another indication of our leading position in the industry. Great skill is required to claim for a victim where the evidence clearly links post-traumatic complications directly to the injury. But greater skill is imperative in claiming where this link is unclear, grey and vague. That is why our firm is so unique in our field. We embrace the seemingly impossible, and turn it into a resounding success, time after time.

A typical case study indicating our expertise involves a certain Matthew H, a Fibromyalgia sufferer who was awarded £330 000 in damages by a well-known personal injury solicitors` firm who agreed to pay after it was alleged that they had not investigated his Fibromyalgia properly and had obtained only £1,810 for him in his accident claim. This incredible outcome was orchestrated by Mr Barr and it was thanks to his excellence that the claim was settled satisfactorily. Matthew H had instructed the solicitors after a van drove into the back of his vehicle at speed on a motorway. Initially he suffered neck, back and shoulder pain, but soon developed multiple joint pains and his GP promptly diagnosed Fibromyalgia. Mr H told the solicitors that he had been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and he thought this had been caused by the accident. They told him to tell this to the GP expert who was preparing a report for the claim. The GP expert mentioned the Fibromyalgia, but said in his report that `...this cannot be attributed to the index accident as there is no medical evidence base to support this association.` The solicitor`s claims handler did not query the GP report. Mr H was advised that it was extremely difficult to prove a link between an accident and Fibromyalgia. He settled his claim for £1,810, still suffering with Fibromyalgia. Some two years later Mr H attended a Fibromyalgia support group meeting where he was told that there were solicitors who were supportive, namely Brian Barr Solicitors. Mr H approached Brian Barr`s, and Mr Barr subsequently took on the case, arguing that the original solicitors should have obtained an opinion from a Consultant Rheumatologist, and not just relied on a GP report. Mr Barr obtained a supportive report from a Consultant Rheumatologist as did the original solicitor`s insurers. Their Rheumatologist agreed that there was a temporal connection between the accident and the onset of Fibromyalgia, but argued that Mr H would have developed Fibromyalgia in any event within about six months because he was obviously vulnerable to getting it. In the final settlement, Mr H received £330,000 plus costs.

Matthew H`s comments: `When I was initially diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, I thought that I could finally get answers to why I was experiencing all the pain, fatigue and all the other many symptoms which come with Fibromyalgia. This wasn't the case. I quickly learned that in fact I could find very little information. What I was certain about was I had none of these symptoms before the RTA but quickly developed them soon after. I told the "personal injury specialist" solicitor, who was representing me at the time, about the diagnosis and my certainty that it was caused by the collision. They didn't seem to really put any importance into this, but did suggest I mention it during a medical assessment that they had previously arranged, which I did. The solicitor agreed with the doctor`s report that it would be difficult to connect Fibromyalgia with the RTA. They advised me of this, and even though I knew there was a connection, I settled for a very small amount. I could no longer continue in my employment. I had a young family, no future, and became very depressed. Some years later, I found an advert for Brian Barr Solicitors who are specialists in dealing with Fibromyalgia claims. I spoke with Brian who from the start was very knowledgeable. I finally felt I had somebody who really understood my situation and was willing to fight my case. Brian and I worked with Fiona Ashworth, a barrister at Kings Chambers. Fiona also has an outstanding knowledge of Fibromyalgia. She made me feel calm and confident and I cannot thank her enough. We finally settled for a life changing amount giving me hope for a better future. My family and I will be forever grateful for the hard work and professionalism Brian Barr and his team gave." 

This, and many other cases dealt with by our solicitors, are indicative of the professionalism and high quality work that every one of our solicitors provide, as well as their innate sensitivity and care that manifests clearly in their handling of every case.