WRONGFUL BIRTH

A wrongful birth claim arises as a result of sterilisation failure or vasectomy failure and it also occurs where parents who should have been properly screened, have not been warned that a child may be born with a specific disability and had they been warned would have terminated the pregnancy. A gynaecologist has a duty to inform the patients of the risk of failure, to carry out the operation in accordance with accepted practice and to avoid foreseeable complications.

A vasectomy failure occurs when a male sterilisation operation has not been properly carried out as a result of which there has been an unwanted pregnancy. Common grounds for negligence include the failure to advise about the need to use alternative forms of contraception for several months and failure of operative technique.

A sterilisation failure occurs when a surgical sterilisation has been unsuccessful resulting in an unwanted pregnancy. When conception occurs shortly after the operation it is likely that the surgery was carried out negligently. Occasionally the fallopian tubes which are cut or crushed and clipped or ringed during the operation repair themselves resulting in conception which usually takes at least a year. Surgeons carrying out this procedure should warn about the risk of this potential occurrence before the operation.

Female sterilization is the most common operation carried out by surgeons and consultants in the United kingdom. All procedures have a failure rate even when performed by the most experienced and careful surgeons and ranges between 1 and 4 pregnancies per 1000 women sterilized. Failure may occur due to the following reasons:

• Approximately 5% of patients are pregnant when procedure is carried out
• Correct technique followed by a re-canalisation of the fallopian tubes
• Inappropriate or inadequate surgery leading to the continued fertility.

We are a national network of independent solicitors who deal with clinical negligence compensation claims and we are all members of The Law Society panel of medical negligence experts. Legal Aid is available to take action for medical negligence as a result of vasectomy failure, sterilisation failure and wrongful birth however less than 1% of UK solicitors are approved by the Legal Aid Board. We are franchised to make an immediate application for legal aid and for those who do not meet the financial criteria for public funding we are prepared to consider talking action under the no win no fee scheme. If you would like free advice direct from a specialist solicitor with no further obligation just complete the contact form and a clinical law expert will contact you as soon as possible.