The case:

In a particularly sensitive case, our client had fallen pregnant whilst at University. She had two previous children, one of whom is disabled. She therefore made the decision to undergo a termination. She contacted the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) who sent her medication in the post so she could induce the termination at home. At the time of taking the initial medication, our client’s pregnancy was only five weeks.

After taking the medication, our client had concerns that she was still pregnant as she had only experienced some on and off spotting. She contacted BPAS and voiced her concerns, so an ultrasound scan was arranged. The ultrasound scan reported that there was no ongoing pregnancy and so our client was reassured the termination had been successful.

A further two months had passed, and our client still had concerns that she was pregnant. An at home pregnancy test came back positive. A further ultrasound scan was arranged with BPAS and this confirmed a 19 week pregnancy. As the pregnancy was below then 24-week legal limit for a termination, our client was advised that she could undergo a surgical abortion, however, our client chose to proceed with the pregnancy.

Our client went into labour at 34 weeks and gave birth via a traumatic caesarean section with extensive blood loss leading to a period in intensive care.

How we helped:

Although the initial failed abortion was not negligent, we were able to successfully argue that there was a failure to identify the ongoing pregnancy on the first ultrasound scan.

We successfully recovered £39,000 in compensation for the client in respect of the wrongful birth and traumatic caesarean section.

The client provided the following 5-star review:

“Your attention to detail and thorough understanding of the situation were instrumental in achieving a successful outcome. It’s evident that you put in a significant amount of effort and went above and beyond to ensure that my rights and interests were protected. Your professionalism and excellent communication skills made me feel at ease throughout the entire process, and I was confident that I was in capable hands. Your timely responses to my queries and the way you kept me informed at every step of the journey are qualities that set you apart.”