By: 22 January 2025
Award winners Coodes Solicitors on the future of personal injury

Coodes Solicitors won Clinical Negligence Team of the Year at the 2024 Personal Injury Awards. We spoke to them to find out how it feels to be an award winning team, the great work they do to make them winners, and to get their insights into the future of the personal injury industry.

Congratulations on winning Clinical Negligence Team of the Year! What does winning this award mean?

Winning the Clinical Negligence Team of the Year award is an extraordinary honour that reflects the dedication, expertise and compassion our team brings to every single case and client.

It is a fantastic achievement not just for the team but the whole firm. We know our team is small in comparison to some but more than packs a punch against the much larger national firms.

It underscores our unwavering commitment to justice, our specialist expertise and our dedication to our clients. After being shortlisted for the award the previous two years, this is a particularly proud moment for the team and everyone at Coodes.

Can you elaborate a bit more on the great work the team does? 

The clinical negligence team at Coodes Solicitors, led by Rachel Pearce, has significant expertise in a range of clinical negligence claims, including birth injuries, catastrophic neurological injuries and amputations. We also manage mental health cases, which result in representation at inquests, including preventable suicide cases and Jury Inquests.

Everyone in the team fights for and achieves justice for their clients while helping to secure early rehabilitation and compensation to rebuild their lives. We maintain an excellent reputation for handling difficult and high value claims and are one of two firms in Cornwall with a Legal Aid contract for birth injury claims.

The team has achieved successful outcomes for several clients who were previously rejected by other firms. We have been recognised in the Chambers and Partners Guide 2025 which ranks the Clinical Negligence Team as Band 3 for the third year running, recognising the team’s expertise in a range of claims and their ability to “explain the process in a jargon-free way”, their empathy and hard work to “leave no stone unturned when investigating”.

The judges were very impressed with the growth trajectory. How have you been able to grow so quickly, so successfully? 

Several strategies have been key to this growth including:

  • People – the focus has been to attract exceptional legal talent with specialism in Clinical Negligence as well as developing the existing team through specific training and mentoring in order to organically grow talent from within.
  • IT – using advance case management systems and specialist tech platforms has enabled the team to work efficiently, manage cases effectively and streamline the process as far as possible.
  • Client care – the team deliver exceptional client care, building strong relationships with clients and controlling the number of cases the fee earners have to ensure the high level of client care is maintained throughout.
  • Reputation – the team have built a solid reputation in the Clinical Negligence field both locally and nationally with consistent results and dedication to justice.
  • Collaboration – the team have built strong relationships and work alongside medical experts, charities and other professional organisations.

Can you speak more to Coodes’ focus on people from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds? 

The team supports the local community through running specialist free-of-charge drop-in clinics across the region, to give clients easy access to expert legal support and guidance to overcome the difficulty of accessing legal support in remote regions of the counties. These are often run alongside other organisations such as CAB Cornwall and the brain injury association, Headway.

As part of this offering, the team runs a free-of-charge drop-in clinic with the Legal Advice Centre in Falmouth – the only clinic of its kind in Cornwall.  This has resulted in the team receiving a number of enquiries and providing help at an early stage, including signposting residents to other agencies where necessary.

Individual team members also support their community in other ways. For example, one team member volunteers for the AvMA helpline.

What are the biggest challenges facing the personal injury industry? 

There are significant challenges facing the personal injury industry as a result of economic pressures, a changing regulatory landscape and client expectations.

The Whiplash Reform Programme (Civil Liability Act 2018) introduced reforms that capped payouts for whiplash claims and increased the small claims limit from £1,000 to £5,000. These changes were one of the most significant in recent years and have reduced the number of low-value claims and increased the financial burden on claimants pursuing cases.

In addition, the extension of Fixed Recoverable Costs (FRC) to more types of personal injury claims limits the legal fees recoverable, reducing the financial viability of representing certain claims, particularly for smaller firms.

Persistent issues with fraudulent or exaggerated claims have also led to stricter insurance industry scrutiny and regulatory interventions, such as requiring claimants to provide more evidence.

Firms will need to continue to adapt to the changing regulatory landscape to remain competitive.

The digitalisation of the claims process presents some opportunities but online portals like the Official Injury Claim portal for whiplash claims have placed the onus on claimants to navigate complex processes independently, potentially reducing demand for legal representation.

Campaigns by insurers and the media highlighting “compensation culture” have undermined the concept of accountability and redress and stigmatised the industry, making some clients reluctant to pursue legitimate claims. This combined with many feeling the squeeze in their budgets means that some are less willing to pursue claims due to concerns around legal costs.

What are the biggest opportunities? 

There are considerable opportunities stemming from technological advancements, regulatory adaptations and shifts in consumer needs and expectations.

Technology is reshaping the personal injury sector and the legal industry more widely. Automation and AI tools are helping to streamline case management, document review and client communication. Online portals and apps which can help clients to track their cases and submit documents can enhance the client experience.

There continues to be growth in several emerging areas of claims. This includes e-scooter and cycling claims with a rise in the number of accidents. In addition, increased recognition of mental health in workplaces creates potential for claims related to workplace stress and psychological harm.

What does the future hold, both for Coodes and personal injury more generally? 

The personal injury industry in the UK is at a crossroads. Whilst legislative reforms and economic pressures are presenting challenges, innovation and adaptation offer significant opportunities.

We are seeing changing market dynamics with larger firms continuing to dominate through acquisitions, leaving smaller firms to focus on specialised services or merge to survive. We expect that technology startups and online claims platforms will intensify competition, pushing traditional firms to innovate.

The increasing automation and use of AI in claims management, case analysis and client communication will streamline processes, reduce costs and improve efficiency. Platforms like the Official Injury Claim portal will continue to influence the industry, encouraging firms to offer guidance or fixed-fee services to claimants navigating these systems.

And with this rise of accessible technology, more claimants may opt for self-representation, particularly for low-value claims, driving demand for affordable advisory services. In addition, economic pressures may discourage claimants from pursuing cases or seeking legal representation, leading to demand for more affordable legal services. Clients will increasingly expect clear, fixed-fee pricing structures and outcome predictions.

The ongoing regulatory changes mentioned may lead firms to shift their focus toward higher-value, complex claims like catastrophic injuries, clinical negligence and industrial diseases, which are less impacted by legislative caps.

The firms that embrace technology, specialise in high-value claims and prioritise client-centric services are likely to thrive in the evolving landscape. At Coodes we will continue to strive to achieve justice for our clients and deliver exceptional client care, taking time to understand each client’s case circumstances and providing compassionate, personalised care throughout the case. We continually review our IT processes and technology to stay ahead of the curve and to enable the team to work efficiently and accurately.

We will stay fully up to date with legal and medical updates, changes and developments to ensure that we maintain our specialist expertise and continue to deliver exceptional results for our clients.

By combining these elements, we are well-positioned to thrive and adapt in the changing landscape of the industry.

Robert Welbourn
Robert Welbourn is a contributing reporter for Claims Media. His background is in banking and finance; he has worked for a number of high street banks and trading platforms. He's also a published author and freelance writer and editor.