December 2025 Contents
 Welcome to the December 2025 issue of PI Brief Update Law Journal. Click the relevant links below to read the articles. CPD Note that there are no new monthly CPD quizzes since the SRA and the BSB have both updated their CPD schemes to eliminate this requirement. Reading PIBULJ articles can still help to meet your CPD needs. For further details see our CPD Information page.
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| Personal Injury Articles | |
 Flout the Rules and Find Out: The Unforgiving Nature of the DBA Regime - Georgina Pressdee, Temple Garden Chambers On 10 September 2025, Mr Justice Dexter Dias handed down his judgment in Reeves v Frain and McKinnon [2025] EWHC 2311 (KB), concerning the regulation of damage-based agreements (DBAs). The Issues - There were two issues in the appeal: 1. Whether, under Section 58AA of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 (the Act) and the Damages-Based Agreements Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/609) (the Regulations), payment is only permitted out of sums recovered from another party. 2. Whether Counsel's fees can be charged as expenses... |
 Causation proves fatal in tragic suicide case - Michael Brooks Reid, Temple Garden Chambers Michael Brooks Reid discusses the recent Court of Appeal decision in the clinical negligence case Zgonec-Rozej and Ors v Dr Stephen Pereira [2025] EWCA Civ 171. The judgment addresses interesting issues of causation and evidence of relevance to all personal injury practitioners. Facts: John Jones QC ('Mr Jones') was a patient of the defendant psychiatrist, Dr Stephen Pereira, at the Nightingale Hospital beginning in January 2016, suffering from severe anxiety and insomnia. Dr Pereira's working diagnosis was... |
 A hollow victory: Harassment proven but dishonest Claimant loses all - Michael Brooks Reid, Temple Garden Chambers Michael Brooks Reid discusses the recent High Court decision in Taiwo v Homelets of Bath Ltd [2025] EWHC 3173 (KB), in which the whole claim, including statutory damages for harassment, was dismissed following a finding of fundamental dishonesty. Facts: The Claimant brought proceedings arising out of her treatment by the Defendant landlord and its agents during an attempted eviction in 2010. At a liability only trial in 2018, it was found that the Claimant had been subjected to harassment contrary to the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and had been... |
 Commitment Issues: The Court of Appeal Separates Committal from Contempt - Georgina Pressdee, Temple Garden Chambers On 11 November 2025, the Court of Appeal handed down its Judgment in Buzzard-Quashie v Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police [2025] EWCA Civ 1397 which reiterates and reaffirms several key principles in the law of civil contempt. Background: The Appellant (A) had been arrested and taken into custody but the charges against her were quickly dropped. She alleged that she was assaulted by the arresting officers and complained about this via telephone shortly after the arrest. She requested all the footage recorded on the officer's body worn cameras (BWV) and asked for it to be... |
| Clinical Negligence Medicine by Dr Mark Burgin | |
 Why Trust is the Missing Piece of Healthcare - Dr Mark Burgin Dr Mark Burgin uses his personal experience to explain why trust is the best predictor of excellent healthcare outcomes. When I was a child I met a doctor who influenced my life, he stood at the end of my bed in the children's ward in a suit with white coated doctors around him. Looking back now it is difficult to know what had the biggest impact on my 4-year-old mind. Was it his voice which was deep and comforting, or his charisma which was certainly impressive?... |
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![Appeal judge rules that credit hire company has no costs liability following a finding of fundamental dishonesty in personal injury case: RSA v. Fastrack Solutions Limited [2023] 4 WLUK 92 - David Bowden, Erimus Chambers](/content/images/resized/images/stories/carkeys_72_72.jpg)
