Medicolegal
Cardiothoracic expert witness
Independent expert opinion in adult cardiac and thoracic surgery for clinical negligence, personal injury, inquests and tribunals. Instructions are accepted from claimant and defendant solicitors, and jointly.
Reports
- Breach of dutyWhether the care provided fell below the standard of a reasonably competent cardiothoracic surgeon or team, judged against the practice and guidance of the time.
- CausationWhether, on the balance of probabilities, any breach caused or materially contributed to the injury, and what would have happened with appropriate care.
- Condition and prognosisCurrent condition, future course, and needs arising from cardiac or thoracic injury or surgery, with clinical examination of the claimant where required.
- Inquests and tribunalsReports for HM Coroner and attendance at the Coroner’s Court; reports for tribunals.
Areas of expertise
- Thoracic surgery and lung diseaseDelayed diagnosis and treatment, including lung cancer; idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis; pulmonary embolism; lung resection, thoracotomy and their after-effects.
- Chest traumaBlunt and penetrating chest injury: see thoracic injuries below.
- Complications of proceduresBleeding and re-operation (including after pacing-wire removal), stroke, sternal wound infection and mediastinitis, complications of cardiopulmonary bypass, injury to the pulmonary artery and venae cavae, and injuries from central lines, arterial lines and chest drains.
- Coronary artery diseaseCoronary artery bypass grafting, including urgent, emergency and redo surgery; myocardial infarction; complications following stent placement.
- Heart valve diseaseAortic and mitral valve replacement and repair, redo valve surgery, prosthetic valve complications and endocarditis; sutureless and minimally invasive aortic valve replacement.
- Aortic diseaseThoracic aortic aneurysm, aortic dissection (including dissection after extreme exertion) and traumatic aortic rupture.
- Heart muscle diseaseIschaemic, dilated and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and heart failure.
- Diagnosis and consentMisdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis, and consent to cardiothoracic treatment.
Thoracic injuries
Condition and prognosis reports, and breach of duty and causation opinions, for chest injuries sustained in road traffic collisions, falls, and workplace, sporting and other accidents.
Injuries
- Rib fracturesSingle and multiple rib fractures, flail chest and fractures of the costal cartilages.
- Sternal fracturesIncluding seatbelt injuries, and associated injury to the heart and great vessels.
- Clavicle and shoulder-girdle injuriesFractures of the clavicle and injuries to the sternoclavicular joint, in the context of chest trauma.
- Injuries to the lungs, pleura and diaphragmPneumothorax, haemothorax, lung contusion and laceration, and diaphragmatic injury, and their treatment, including chest drains and surgery.
- Injuries to the heart and aortaCardiac contusion (myocardial bruising), traumatic aortic rupture and blunt thoracic aortic injury, including endovascular repair (TEVAR) and long-term surveillance.
- Penetrating injuriesKnife and other puncture wounds to the chest and heart.
- Sports-related injuriesSudden cardiac arrest, myocardial bruising, coronary artery anomalies, exercise-induced pneumothorax and aortic dissection after extreme exertion.
What the report addresses
- Mechanism and attributionWhether the injuries are consistent with the accident described, and the effect of any pre-existing conditions.
- Treatment and recoveryThe appropriateness of treatment received, and the expected course of recovery.
- Persisting symptomsChronic chest-wall pain, intercostal neuralgia, chest-wall deformity, breathlessness, reduced exercise tolerance and long-term cardiac sequelae.
- Prognosis and future riskLikelihood of further treatment or surgery, need for long-term surveillance, and the outlook for return to work, sport and daily activities.
- ExaminationClaimants can be seen and examined in clinic where a condition and prognosis report requires it.
Clinical standing
I am a practising consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at Leeds General Infirmary, part of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, where I have been a consultant since 2018 and Cardiac Surgery Clinical Lead since 2022. My opinions are based on current, active practice in a large NHS cardiac surgical unit with a substantial urgent and emergency workload.
I am Mortality Lead for cardiac surgery, a former Governance Lead, and a medical appraiser for the Trust, so the review of clinical care against accepted standards is part of my day-to-day work.
Expert witness practice
- Expert witness since 2023Clinical negligence and personal injury, for claimant and defendant, and criminal cases.
- Bond Solon trainedReports prepared in accordance with Part 35 of the Civil Procedure Rules and its Practice Direction.
- Courts, coroners and policeAttendance at Coroner’s Court; reports for inquests, tribunals, the coroner’s office and the police; available to give oral evidence.
- QualificationsFRCSEd (C-Th) 2016 · GMC specialist register, cardiothoracic surgery
How to instruct
- TimescalesAppointments usually within 4–6 weeks; reports within about 4 weeks of appointment.
- AppointmentsFace to face in Barnsley, Doncaster and Stockport, and in Liverpool by arrangement; remote appointments; evening and weekend appointments; prison visits.
- Desktop reportsRecords-based reports where examination is not required.
- Instructions acceptedClaimant and defendant, joint instructions, legal aid, military and criminal cases. Claimants aged 18 and over.
- Redacted sample reportAvailable on request through MLAS.
- EnquiriesConflict checks, availability and fees are handled by MLAS (Medical & Legal Admin Services).
Please do not send medical records or other confidential material by email to the addresses on this website.