Medical report for personal injury claim in employment / tribunal the MSE way??

JCS1

SChitmehard said:

There is a basis for a claim and the ex-employer has accepted it otherwise they would not have offered me money.  They made an offer of a month which I thought was insulting. I am unemployed still and should have done the work myself and not got the solicitor and that way saved a bit of money. But at the time I was a bit stressed and thought I wouldn't be able to do it. Just need to get to the next stage and settle if possible.

Anyway, what I need now is a cheap way to get a medical report so if anyone can help with that I'd be grateful.

Has the ex-employer admitted liability?  They may have offered you money just to make you go away as the easiest option.

MalMonroe

If you google 'private psychiatrist employment tribunal' or something similar, you can see if there's one in your area who would book an hour's assessment and then do a report, I've seen some on the internet who charge as little as £360 but certainly no more than £400 (nowhere near £3000). 

If you are unemployed you could have also applied for Legal Aid or you could have done a google search for a qualified, experienced solicitor in your area - 

I used https://www.lawworks.org.uk/ and found a local qualified solicitor experienced in employment law who did pro bono work whilst working as a lecturer at the University I graduated from. (Although having studied there was not a requirement.) My employment case was settled, to my satisfaction, before we were due in court.

There's also https://weareadvocate.org.uk/volunteer/partner-schemes.html

Sorry, though, I realise that it may be far too late for you to consider these options.

But as marcon says above, if you are going to take the mental health issues out of the equation, what exactly is going to be the basis of your case?

Please read the info in the following link about judicial mediation. I agree with you that it would be great if everything could be solved at this stage. Considering taking this case, which is very weak at best, further to an actual Tribunal is not to be taken lightly since it will be very costly, especially if you lose. It is also a very stressful experience in itself. 

https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/en/public/for-public-visitors/common-legal-issues/workplace-problems/judicial-mediation-at-an-employment-tribunal

Jillanddy

JCS1 said:

SChitmehard said:

There is a basis for a claim and the ex-employer has accepted it otherwise they would not have offered me money.  They made an offer of a month which I thought was insulting. I am unemployed still and should have done the work myself and not got the solicitor and that way saved a bit of money. But at the time I was a bit stressed and thought I wouldn't be able to do it. Just need to get to the next stage and settle if possible.

Anyway, what I need now is a cheap way to get a medical report so if anyone can help with that I'd be grateful.

Has the ex-employer admitted liability?  They may have offered you money just to make you go away as the easiest option.

This. 

A month is "we can't be bothered with you" money. It certainly does not mean you have any basis for a claim. I've asked twice,  but you just say there is a basis. You had four months service,  and were dismissed. Whether you like it or not,  you have no basis for unfair dismissal.  As you were repeatedly told previously. So what exactly is your employment claim? You have a solicitor who is assessing you as having a claim based on no evidence because they are now telling you to go and get the evidence. So on what have they suggested you have a claim when you haven't given them any evidence? And haven't worked there long enough to claim unfair dismissal? 

I am sure this will go down like a lead balloon,  but will say it anyway. You have already demonstrated a single minded obsession with this matter,  which flies in the face of your own version of events. Which is why people were telling you to move on in the previous threads.  Regrettably there are still solicitors who are able to see a train wreck coming and exploit it to their own advantage. And do so quite legally. Your solicitor appears to have advised you to get a report from a GP without knowing that no GP would provide such a report. And if they had any medico- legal knowledge they would know exactly where to send you and have a dozen possibles on a list ready to use. That is what experts do. They don't advise you to spend £3000 on a report for an entirely dubious claim that even you can't believe in - you said as much in saying that you are not unfit for work. 

I will lay you bets that the only winner here will be your solicitor, and I'd guess they will walk away with any money - one way or another. Please think carefully about pursuing this obsession any further. You still have a lot to lose,  and to be honest,  it doesn't seem to be doing your mental health any good either. I appreciate that it was a horrible blow to lose your job the way you did,  but you haven't hit rock bottom yet. There's still a way to go,  and I don't think anyone here would want you to get there. I worry that you are driving yourself to that place and won't stop to see what you are doing to yourself.

74jax

SChitmehard said:

There is a basis for a claim and the ex-employer has accepted it otherwise they would not have offered me money.  They made an offer of a month which I thought was insulting. I am unemployed still and should have done the work myself and not got the solicitor and that way saved a bit of money. But at the time I was a bit stressed and thought I wouldn't be able to do it. Just need to get to the next stage and settle if possible.

Anyway, what I need now is a cheap way to get a medical report so if anyone can help with that I'd be grateful.

When you say 'accepted it', accepted what exactly? And is this in writing?  Usually it's just a payment offered as it will save them having to pay legal costs to fight it. If they 'accepted' it, surely you don't need evidence, as they agree with you?

Who has your solicitor advised you use? Reading this, your solicitor seems to have left you high and dry. Isn't it the solicitor who gathers the evidence? 

I really don't see how this report can go in your favour. Surely having evidence saying you will be able to work in the future is positive for the other side not you? What are you claiming for? Can we maybe help you with that? At the moment we are helping blind. 

What %of success has your solicitor given you? Is it an employment solicitor? 

GrumpyDil

All of the above. Many years ago we had to threaten to take a previous employer to the ET. We were privately funding because there was too much going on to handle it ourselves. Our solicitor arranged everything for us, including specialist advice and we finally settled the day before we were due to go to the tribunal.

Your solicitor asking you to arrange a private report yourself sounds really odd as if it was an area they had experience in I would expect them to have details of specialists they have previously worked with who they would involve. 

Jillanddy

GrumpyDil said:

All of the above. Many years ago we had to threaten to take a previous employer to the ET. We were privately funding because there was too much going on to handle it ourselves. Our solicitor arranged everything for us, including specialist advice and we finally settled the day before we were due to go to the tribunal.

Your solicitor asking you to arrange a private report yourself sounds really odd as if it was an area they had experience in I would expect them to have details of specialists they have previously worked with who they would involve. 

I may be too cynical, but I would bet they know one who would write a report for £3,000. And probably charge the OP for making the referral.

Undervalued

JCS1 said:

SChitmehard said:

There is a basis for a claim and the ex-employer has accepted it otherwise they would not have offered me money.  They made an offer of a month which I thought was insulting. I am unemployed still and should have done the work myself and not got the solicitor and that way saved a bit of money. But at the time I was a bit stressed and thought I wouldn't be able to do it. Just need to get to the next stage and settle if possible.

Anyway, what I need now is a cheap way to get a medical report so if anyone can help with that I'd be grateful.

Has the ex-employer admitted liability?  They may have offered you money just to make you go away as the easiest option.

Virtually every claim that is settled before tribunal / court is on a "without admission of liability" basis. Such settlements are neary always subject to a confidentiality agreement.

As you suggest many smaller claims, which may well have been easy to defend, are settled just to avoid the hassle and cost of defending them.

TBagpuss

As others have said,. the fact that the employer made you an offer doesn't (unless they explicitly said so) mean that they accept you have a valid claim.

Fighting a claim is expensive, it takes up time (so takes the HR person / manager away from their normal work) and involves spending money on legal costs etc. None of which they would normally be able to reclaim from you even of they win.

It's often more cost effective to offer something to settle the case. Most businesses will take a pragmatic view e.g. if they can end the claim by paying someone (say) £2,000, then it makes sense to do so, rather than spending £5,000 and hours and hours of time to fight the case, even when you have a very high chance of successfully defending the case.

Of course, they may still be prepared to settle but the longer it continues, the less benefit there is to them in doing so. And of course even if they think that your claim  may have some merit, they may take the view that their prospects of success are good enough that it is worth holding out , once they've spent the money on representation.

In terms of your specific claims, I think you need to ask your solicitor for their advice. There are some medico-legal experts who are GPs but that doesn't mean every GP is a suitable expert. You probably need to clarify what they think your realistic prospects of success are and how much they believe that your claim is worth, 

Jillanddy

TBagpuss said:

As others have said,. the fact that the employer made you an offer doesn't (unless they explicitly said so) mean that they accept you have a valid claim.

Fighting a claim is expensive, it takes up time (so takes the HR person / manager away from their normal work) and involves spending money on legal costs etc. None of which they would normally be able to reclaim from you even of they win.

It's often more cost effective to offer something to settle the case. Most businesses will take a pragmatic view e.g. if they can end the claim by paying someone (say) £2,000, then it makes sense to do so, rather than spending £5,000 and hours and hours of time to fight the case, even when you have a very high chance of successfully defending the case.

Of course, they may still be prepared to settle but the longer it continues, the less benefit there is to them in doing so. And of course even if they think that your claim  may have some merit, they may take the view that their prospects of success are good enough that it is worth holding out , once they've spent the money on representation.

In terms of your specific claims, I think you need to ask your solicitor for their advice. There are some medico-legal experts who are GPs but that doesn't mean every GP is a suitable expert. You probably need to clarify what they think your realistic prospects of success are and how much they believe that your claim is worth, 

And how much it will cost! Because the OP seems to suggest that they have paid for this solicitor, so every minute they spend on this will be billed - something the employer will no doubt know also, so sitting tight will continue to cost the OP money they can ill afford.

The other point to note is that you are quite right - costs are rarely awarded to either side. So even if this goes to a tribunal, they can't expect to get back their costs for the solicitor and other "expert" opinions. If they won, and it is a big if, they would have to pay those costs from their award. But there are also exceptions where costs may be awarded - if a claimant clearly has no prospect of success and continues to fight a hopeless case. Solicitors do as their clients instruct them, even if they have warned the client that they have little prospect of success. Given the average award for tribunals is exceedingly low, and the OP here has less than 4 months service, the prospects have to be poor; and a "win" would likely not cover their costs but a loss could bankrupt them. Solicitors are not known to be forgiving of unpaid bills.

pinkshoes

SChitmehard said:

There is a basis for a claim and the ex-employer has accepted it otherwise they would not have offered me money.  They made an offer of a month which I thought was insulting. 

I find this concerning.

The offer they made you sounds very much like a gesture of goodwill rather than admission of liability.

As for having to pay for your own medical report - this is normally something your legal team would pay for then add it to your claim. The fact they're making you pay for it hints there isn't much of a pay out to be had and they don't have much confidence in your claim.

I would tread carefully as your payout might not cover your expenses!