Ian Cohen, Non-Executive Director
Cobden House Chambers recently released a press release relating to a novel “two-house” solution in a traumatic brain injury case.
Whilst the actual case does not yet appear to have been reported, the press release states: “The claimant sustained a severe traumatic brain injury as a child pedestrian in a road traffic accident. As he entered adulthood, a planned transition into supported independent living was trialled but proved unfeasible, even with professional support. It became clear that while the claimant would benefit from living separately from his family, he still required substantial care and proximity to his primary carers to ensure his ongoing rehabilitation. Rather than relying on a single accommodation arrangement, Richard Hartley KC and Tim Grover advanced a case for two distinct living spaces: one adapted to meet the claimant’s immediate medical and care requirements, and the other designed to support long-term rehabilitation and independence.”
It is very refreshing to hear about creative and collaborative approaches where the best interests of a severely injured claimant are at the forefront of everyone’s mind – just as it should be. I have no doubt that this case will be closely analysed with a view to adoption in other similar cases.
The ongoing opportunities for external investment in the legal sector were reported by The Times in an article titled “Law Firms Are Private Equity’s Next Target.” While there are various examples of private equity (PE) having already invested in the legal market, there is no doubt this will ramp up as PE sees opportunities for scale, efficiencies driven by technology and AI, resulting in cost-cutting and enhanced margins. What will be interesting to see is what segments of the legal sector they will invest in and what size of firm. My view is that no sector and no firm, whatever its size, is safe.
Ian Cohen
PLG Consultants, Tuesday 1st April
