Maurece Hutchinson

Personal injury and road traffic specialist firm JMK Solicitors has been calling since 2016 for action to ensure children’s rights are fully protected when making personal injury claims following road traffic collisions.

This position was endorsed in 2017 when the civil justice review chaired by Lord Justice Gillen urged that “serious consideration be given to introducing court legislation to make court approval of legal settlements of financial cases involving minors mandatory”.

The Shadow Civil Justice Council met last March to discuss the issue and is now also advocating for legislative intervention.

Maurece Hutchinson, managing director of JMK Solicitors, recently met with representatives from both the Department of Justice and the Association of British Insurers (ABI) to continue to press for legislative reform.

Following this meeting, Justice Minister Naomi Long said the matter would “benefit from further exploration by way of a public consultation exercise”, likely to take place after summer, JMK said.

Ms Hutchinson said: “JMK Solicitors are committed to protecting the rights of the vulnerable and I am pleased to receive the commitment from the minster after many years of work highlighting the issue. By the Autumn we will be another step closer to guaranteeing the rights of children in personal injury claims.

“Children are entitled to be represented by a solicitor, and any compensation they receive should be protected and held securely in a court-approved investment account for the child’s own use.”