Thompsons

Equity Members (partners): 25

Salaried Members: 20

Solicitors: 234

Other fee earners: 222

THE FIRM Thompsons is recognised as one of the leading national social justice law firms in the country and this year it celebrates its 100 year centenary. Since 1921, the firm has used the law to change lives for the better securing millions of pounds in compensation each year for the disadvantaged and marginalised. Thompsons has a unique commitment to only acting for the injured or mistreated, never insurers or perpetrators of malpractice. Thompsons has a reputation for taking on and winning difficult cases and have been responsible for a significant number of landmark victories. Thompsons is currently handling 170 cases with a quantum value of over half a million pounds, 80 of which have quantum values in excess of one million pounds, and some in excess of ten million pounds.

PRINCIPAL AREAS OF WORK:

Personal Injury: The firm acts only for claimants advising thousands of people and securing in excess of £150 million damages each year. The firm’s strength in depth means it is organised by way of specialist units dealing with specific case types. From a slip in the street to a claim of the upmost severity clients deal with lawyers specialised in and focussed on the case type in question.

Workplace Accidents: Thompsons established the law underpinning workplace legislation. The firm ran the case in 1937 that established the concept of employers liability, was instrumental in establishing the Health and Safety at work Act 1974 and won in the cases of Dugmore v Swansea NHS Trust (2002), Allison v LUL (2008) and Cox v MOJ (2016) The firm is known for pushing the boundaries for workplace protections.

Asbestos Disease: Thompsons has been representing victims of asbestos related disease for more than 50 years and since being responsible for the first-ever successful asbestos disease claim before the House of Lords in 1972 has lead the field in asbestos litigation ever since. In the three years to 2020, it secured just under £99million for asbestos disease victims. Recent successes include recovering damages for the costs of treatment not available on the NHS and mesothelioma cases involving low levels of exposure to asbestos.

Industrial Disease: Thompsons’ industrial disease department handles thousands of cases and regularly litigates Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome, noise induced hearing loss and tinnitus claims. It handled the test case on noise induced hearing loss, leading to the National Deafness Scheme, won the first test cases for welders’ lung and the landmark stress at work claim, John Walker v Northumberland (1995).

Medical Negligence: Thompsons medical negligence practice rose to national prominence being Lead Solicitor in the group litigation pursuing the negligent breast surgeon Ian Paterson. The firm acted for over 600 women resulting in a £37 million compensation package. It is now running further group litigation against the same surgeon after discovering many more woman had been affected. The firm is leading the way in the Mesh scandal representing over 500 hundred women who have suffered life changing injuries as a result of negligent insertion of mesh. The firm acts for the most seriously injured regularly recovering tens of millions of pounds for birth injury claims. The firm has an well-established expertise in cerebral palsy claims.

Employment Rights: The firm acts only for claimants in employment matters and on instruction from the trade union movement. It has an unparalleled history of working with trade unions to defend workers’ rights. The employment rights department has a reputation for securing landmark victories including in 2018 Blacklisting and Lofty v Harris (t/a First Café) 2018 IRLR 512 with regard to the definition of cancer for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010.

Criminal Law: Thompsons’ criminal litigation unit which again only acts for employees and only then for trade union members provides work-related criminal law and professional misconduct advice. It has significant experience representing professionals facing proceedings before bodies such as the NMC, the HCPC, the GDC, the GPC and the GTC.

CLIENTS:

The firm is the legal provider of choice to the majority of the UK’s major trade unions whilst also acting for thousands of individual claimants each year.

INTERNATIONAL:

Thompsons has a specialist foreign jurisdiction team specialised in handling complex cross-border claims worth several million pounds each year.

RECRUITMENT:

Thompsons is a pioneering firm that encourages its people to share its principles. Employees are professionally challenged, closely trained and supervised and provided with the opportunity to work on high-profile cases that make history. The firm works closely with organisations aimed at encouraging access to education, and legal representation in diverse communities.