Christopher Stephenson represented an army veteran who had been wrongly tasered by the police in Luton, securing an award of £50,000 which is one of the highest paid in this type of case. Michael (not his real name) was a British Army veteran who suffers from severe Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after tours of duty in Northern Ireland and Bosnia. Following a severe flashback police were called to the grounds of the Luton and Dunstable Hospital. After about an hour of calm negotiations one of the four officers surrounding Michael drew his Taser and told him to turn around. Michael asked the officer to put his weapon down, but suddenly the Taser was deployed and Michael was struck by a 1,500 volt electric shock. Michael claimed that there was no change in the circumstances of the incident that justified deployment of the Taser and that it was fired unreasonably. The incident has had a profound effect on Michael, who has suffered a profound and debilitating exacerbation of his PTSD.
Christopher was instructed by Gus Silverman of Irwin Mitchell, Bristol.
Chambers congratulates Adam Dawson upon being awarded an MBE for services to charity and service to the Jewish Community. For over 30 years Adam has been involved in the heart of the Jewish community, leading several charities and organisations. After a year as Chair of…
This week Russell Wilcox and Thomas Clarke examine whether in applications to set aside default judgment there exists such a thing as a ‘co-defendant principle’; essential reading for all practitioners. Co-defendants and Applications to Set Aside: the More the Merrier? In the recent case of…
Introduction On Wednesday 21st of May, the Supreme Court handed down judgment in the long-awaited case of URS Corporation Ltd v BDW Trading Ltd [2025] UKSC 21. The judgment was awaited by almost all with an interest in construction law and related professional negligence. BDW…
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