TUESDAY 20 TH MAY 2025
The Edwardian Manchester
9am - 4pm
The running order:
TIME SPEAKER
9:00am Arrival, Refreshments and Networking
9:30am Welcome - Jemma Morland & Pankaj Madan (Chair)
9:45am
Full session 1 - William Waldron KC: Brain Injury... What Brain Injury? The litigation challenges of trying to engage reluctant Claimants or their families.
10:15am Full session 2 - Pankaj Madan (Chair): An update on liability for pedestrian accidents.
10:45am
Full session 3 - Professor Dominic Regan: Litigation Developments.
11:15am - 11:45am Morning Break and Networking
11:45am
12:15pm
Breakout sessions - either:
Breakout session 4a - Vicki Gilman: Balancing Protection and Autonomy: Stories of strength, surprise and self-determination.
Breakout session 4b - Holly Hirst: Keeping Autonomy at the Core: Insights from recent case law.
Breakout sessions - either:
Breakout session 5a - Ben McCormack & Mandy Cheung: Capacity Update: What does recent case law tell us about concepts like insight, belief, and executive functioning and their relevance to the test for mental capacity?
Breakout session 5b - Francesca Sephton: Assistive Technology at ATtherapy: What are the latest AAC and AT developments that can support individuals with complex communication needs?
12:45pm - 1:45pm Lunch and Networking, with live music from Matthew
1:45pm Full session 6 - Dr Ruth Kent: Considering the lifelong needs of adults with cerebral palsy: what lawyers need to know.
2:15pm
2:45pm
3:15pm
Breakout sessions - either:
Breakout session 7a - Anava Baruch and Andrew Pryer: Delivering client autonomy within the accommodation space.
Breakout session 7b - Ryan Price: Leisure: A rehabilitation ‘goal’.
Full session 8 - Richard Harwood: Five top tips for catastrophic injury litigation.
Full session 9 - Expert Panel Discussion with Professor Dominic Regan and Pankaj Madan
3:45pm - 4:00pm Closing Remarks
Featuring a range of eminent guest speakers:
PANKAJ MADAN (Chair)
Barrister - Exchange Chambers, The North, & 12 King’s Bench Walk London
Pankaj Madan (1997) continues to be a leading specialist in the field of Catastrophic and Severe Brain Injury. He handled a considerable number of very complex severe and catastrophic brain injury cases in the last 12 months. He has an “encyclopaedic knowledge” according to the Legal 500 of traumatic brain injury and has written leading text books in these fields. In the field of severe pain, he is the first lawyer to sit on the Royal Society of Medicine Pain Section Council. Pankaj continues to be instructed by leading firms.
WILL WALDRON KC
Head of Chambers - Exchange Chambers
Will Waldron KC is one of the most experienced Claimant PI Silks in the country and a specialist in catastrophic personal injury cases, particularly those involving brain, spinal injury and amputation. He spends his working life travelling throughout England and Wales to advise people who have suffered life changing injury. With a comprehensive mastery of his practice areas, Will is calm and measured and considered extremely “client-friendly”. Before taking Silk, he spent over a decade as Junior Counsel in catastrophic injury claims, gaining vast experience, which he has been able to deploy to great effect as Leading Counsel. A recent settlement in brain injury cases includes £13.5 million for a young woman catastrophically injured when she was only three years old.
VICKI GILMAN
JEMMA MORLAND
Director and Co FounderEMG Solicitors
Jemma, Co Founder of EMG Solicitors, Jemma is recognised nationally for her Court of Protection experience and is listed in the Legal 500. Jemma leads the Court of Protection Property and Affairs team at EMG Solicitors which has been highlighted as ‘among the finest Court of Protection teams in the country’. A first tier APIL listed expert, Jemma is a Professional Deputy and is regularly called to provide expert witness evidence in high value, multi-track catastrophic injury cases.
PROFESSOR DOMINIC REGAN
Professor at Law
Dominic was appointed a visiting professor at City Law School, London and is a Solicitor (nonpractising) whose specialism is Civil Procedure. Sir Rupert Jackson described him as “the authority on all my reforms”. Lord Grabiner KC called him ‘an excellent orator’ and ‘The Times’ law column spoke of him as ‘a costs guru’. Indeed, Dominic advised him on the fixed costs regime which was implemented in October 2023. He is an advisor to the group lead by Prof Richard Moorhead looking at failings in the Post Office Litigation. Dominic is head of the Knowledge Hub at Frenkel Topping and a prolific writer on Costs and the CPR.
Managing Director & Case Manager - Social Return Case Management Ltd
As the founder of Social Return Case Management Ltd, Vicki champions a biopsychosocial approach to case management and rehabilitation, emphasising the integration of physical, psychological, and social factors in client recovery. Vicki is currently the Chair of the British Association of Brain Injury and Complex Case Management (BABICM) and a past Chair of the Northern Acquired Brain Injury Forum (NABIF). With over 30 years of experience in neurodisability and complex case management, she regularly speaks on rehabilitation, leadership, and case management, advocating for holistic, person-driven approaches.
HOLLY HIRST
Associate Solicitor - EMG Solicitors
Holly supports individuals who have sustained brain injuries with their financial affairs. Holly believes it is a unique privilege to provide support and guidance to someone in the aftermath of their brain injury and to provide the scaffolding that enables them to live the life they want to live. Having worked in this specialism for over a decade, Holly now leads on several deputyship and trust matters, and advises lay deputies on complex matters, particularly where the protected party is of high net worth. Holly has experience of working with clients of varied cultural and religious backgrounds. She is experienced in dealing with cases with an international element and has clients who live in Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore. Holly also has a special interest in paediatric clients and complex family dynamics. Holly can also prepare Expert Witness statements on behalf of both claimants or defendants.
MANDY CHEUNG
Associate Solicitor - EMG Solicitors
Mandy has worked within EMG Solicitors’ Court of Protection Health & Welfare team since 2018 after having spent several years in local authorities. Mandy mainly specialises in representing clients in the Court of Protection and advising on matters under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. Mandy regularly advises on cases involving the deprivation of person’s liberty (in care homes and in the community) and other welfare matters, including a person’s residence, care, contact, access to social media, ability to consent to sex and marriage. Mandy often represents the person who lacks the capacity to make specific welfare decisions for themselves through taking instructions from their litigation friend. Mandy regularly works with the Property & Affairs team, working closely with case managers and financial deputies, providing legal advice on health and welfare matters.
BEN MCCORMACK
Barrister - Garden Court North Chambers
Ben is ranked as a Tier 1 Leading Junior for Court of Protection and Community Care by The Legal 500 and Band 1 for Court of Protection: Health and Welfare. Ben has extensive experience in dealing with mental capacity cases in the Court of Protection. Ben mainly acts for disabled adults and their family members in a wide range of cases, from health and welfare applications and cases involving DOLS, to enduring powers of attorney and property and financial cases. He is regularly instructed by the Official Solicitor. He also acts in guardianship/nearest relative displacement proceedings, and in cases brought under the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court to protect vulnerable adults. He also has many years experience of acting in civil proceedings where mental capacity issues arise.
DR RUTH KENT
Consultant and Senior Lecturer in Neurological Rehabilitation - Mid Yorks NHS Trust and University of Leeds
Dr Ruth Kent is a Consultant and Senior Lecturer in Rehabilitation Medicine with 30 years’ expertise in Neurological Rehabilitation. In 1999, Ruth established a new service for inpatient and rehabilitation for head injuries, stroke, and complicated neurodisability and comprehensive outpatient services for complex neurodisability across Mid Yorkshire. As Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and member of multiple professional bodies including the SRR, British Association of Stroke Physicians and European Academy of Childhood Disability, Ruth contributes significantly to research and frequently acts as Medical Expert on litigation for severe brain injury and Court of Protection cases, including withdrawal of treatment decisions.
MANDY CHEUNG
FRANCESCA SEPHTON
To be confirmed
Clinical Manager - ATtherapy
BIO
Francesca is a highly specialist speech and language therapist and assistive technologist, specialising in the field of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). She led the ATmentor team at ATtherapy for several years and provides specialist assessment and intervention for people who need AAC/AT including paper-based/ no-tech (e.g. eye pointing, using sign, communication books), mid-tech devices (e.g. a communication tool operated with batteries which gives a voice output) and electronic communication aids accessed by a range of methods e.g. switches and eye gaze.
ANAVA BARUCH
Managing Director - Design for Independence
Anava has more than 20 years of experience working as a housing Occupational Therapist for both the private and public sector. She specialises in the inclusive design of domestic and residential buildings, aiming to provide aesthetic solutions for people who are less able. Anava acts as an Accommodation Expert Witness (under Part 35 of the Civil Procedure Rules). Her knowledge and expertise have proven particularly useful when thinking outside of the box is required. Her occupational therapy background enables her to fully understand the care and rehabilitation required when working with clients.
ANDREW PRYER
Business Development ManagerDesign for Independence
Andrew Pryer is relatively new to the world of catastrophic injury litigation and the accommodation environment that supports it. He joined Design for Independence at the beginning of 2024 as their BDM. He reflects on a whirlwind learning curve and that clients, ‘have been very generous with their time and sharing their experiences, consequently I now have a much more detailed understanding of where the systemic bottle necks are and how both underlying clients and decision makers can be better supported’. Andrew brings a wealth of management and customer service experience from his previous career in Investment Banking, where he worked for a number of Tier 1 institutions.
RYAN PRICE Director and Occupational TherapistHeads Up Therapies
Ryan established Heads Up Therapies in 2016 and primarily works with individuals with acquired brain injuries attempting to provide community integration, build engagement in meaningful activities and improve quality of life. The company aims to provide a holistic view to assessment and treatment and take an open approach when considering areas of functional deficit. Ryan aims to develop and provide a wide range of engaging therapeutic rehabilitation opportunities, not least the Acquired Brain Injury Occupational Therapy Football and Golf Groups – these are therapeutic networks that offers a fun opportunity to develop cognitively, socially, physically and psychologically through the medium of sport.
RICHARD HARWOOD Director of Serious Injury Legal Services - Minster Law
Richard is one of the top Serious Injury Lawyers in the UK, he deals with a wide range of high value claims relating to road traffic accidents, accidents at work, occupier liability claims, public liability claims and serious criminal injury compensation cases as high as £20 million. Richard specialises in overseeing fatal accidents and catastrophically injured client claims and oversees all technical and tactical queries across all complex claims teams. Richard takes an active file handling role in the highest value claims within the serious injury department at Minster Law and chairs a fortnightly peer review session which involves an in-depth analysis and advice on the most technically challenging and high value claims. Richard also oversees and approves all final settlements over £250k. He takes a very active role in all budgeting and final costs cases, negotiating and attending court hearings on all cases with costs over £100k. He delivers training on all aspects of litigation to the teams at Minster Law throughout the year.
“Excellent content and engaging speakers. All relevant to my practice and cases. I really enjoyed the day and learnt a lot - what more could I ask.”
“This was an excellent event, superb speakers and engaging topics.”
“We are proud to sponsor EMG’s Annual Conference. At Adroit, we believe in supporting those who help the most vulnerable.”
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Amarjit Bansal, Adroit Financial Planning
Conference Sponsor:
If you require any further information, please contact our events team on: T. 0191 716 8206 E. events@emgsolicitors.com
