Richard Scorer

Richard is Head of the Injury and Negligence Division and specialises in serious personal injury cases including head and spinal injury claims, child abuse cases, malicious prosecution and police assault cases, and actions under the Human Rights Act.

He acts for a wide range of individuals and clients include those who have suffered serious head, spinal and amputation injuries, victims of sexual and physical abuse and assaults, whether as children or adults. In addition to winning multi-million pound awards for clients (for example a recent award of £5.6 million to young girl with serious brain injuries) he has acted in many high profile and landmark cases particularly for victims of child abuse and injured soldiers. 

Richard is recognised by Chambers Independent Legal Guide as a "Leader in the Field" of personal injury. Chambers says that: "Clients find Richard to be totally supportive," going on to describe how he "works exceptionally hard, always fully explaining possible outcomes and providing sound guidance and judgement."  Richard is also rated as "highly recommended" in the Legal 500. 

Richard is a member of the firm’s Management Board.

Best career moment: Acting for Malcolm New, a former British Army intelligence officer, who was the first soldier to win damages from the Ministry of Defence for the Army’s failure to treat his post-traumatic stress disorder. He was a client who deserved every penny of his damages and it was a legal cause worth fighting for.

Notable cases include:

• Rochdale abuse ring cases: Richard acts for young women who were victims of the recently publicised Asian abuse ring in Rochdale 
• Mouncher -v- South Wales Police: Richard acts for one of the senior police officers involved in the investigation into the murder of Lynnette White (the so-called "Cardiff 3" case).
• Warboys cases: Richard acts for victims of the London 'black cab rapist' John Warboys
• New v Ministry of Defence: the first ever award of damages to a soldier for the MOD’s failure to diagnose and treat post traumatic stress disorder
• Budden v Police Aviation Services: a landmark claim by the widow of the pilot killed in the Kent air ambulance helicopter crash
• Father Hill cases: Richard acted for clients abused by Catholic priest Michael Hill. These cases led directly to root-and-branch reform of the church’s child protection procedures
• H v X: a claim for damages by a victim of childhood abuse settled for £538,000, the second largest ever award in a child abuse case
• North Wales Child Abuse Inquiry
• GR -v- Wirral MBC – Court of Appeal 2009: this case strengthened the rights of child abuse victims to bring cases ‘out of time’

Richard is a Fellow of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL), a member of the Solicitors Regulation Authority Personal Injury Accreditation Scheme (Law Society Personal Injury Panel) and the Legal Services Commission North West Area Funding Review Committee. He is a trustee of the Lifeline Project, a national charity dedicated to supporting individuals, families and communities affected by drugs and alcohol.

He is the co-author of the book ‘Child Abuse Compensation Claims’ (originally published in 2002, 2nd edition published by APIL/Jordans 2011), a contributor to ‘Personal Injury: Law, Practice and Precedents’ (APIL/Jordans 2005) and has had numerous articles published in the legal press.

Richard has appeared on radio and TV in relation to many of his personal injury cases, including BBC and ITV national news, ‘Newsnight’, Radio 4 ‘Today’ and ‘PM’ programs, Radio 4’s ‘Law in Action’ and international media. Richard writes a regular column about personal injury law in New Law Journal.