Law firms rake in £700m in fees for coal miners’ claims – Legal Week
“Legal fees for firms advising on the ongoing compensation claims for sick coal miners have hit more than £700m.”
Legal Week, 12th June 2008
Source: www.legalweek.com
Category: miners
Solicitor Jim Beresford makes £30m from sick miners’ compensation scheme – The Times
“A solicitor who specialises in claiming compensation for sick coalminers has banked a personal profit of more than £30 million from the government-funded scheme.”
The Times, 9th June 2008
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
Whitehall bungled miners’ compensation, say MPs – The Guardian
“Whitehall ‘seriously mismanaged’ a £4bn compensation scheme for former miners suffering from lung disease and physical injuries, a report by a committee of MPs said yesterday.”
The Guardian, 4th March 2008
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Lawyers forced to repay millions taken from sick miners’ compensation – The Times
“Law firms that grew rich by exploiting sick miners are to be forced to repay tens of millions of pounds that they wrongly sliced from their clients’ compensation.”
The Times, 8th February 2008
Source: www.timesonline.co.uk
LCS rejects ‘negative’ report on sick miners – Law Society’s Gazette
“The Legal Complaints Service (LCS) has branded a report claiming it has short-changed some sick miners seeking repayment of fees as ‘unduly harsh’ and ‘negative’.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 17th January 2008
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Miners hit by compensation failures – The Lawyer
“Sick miners and their families are losing out on compensation they are entitled to because of administrative failures, according to a critical report by Legal Services Complaints Commissioner Zahida Manzoor.”
The Lawyer, 15th January 2008
Source: www.thelawyer.com
Solicitors make millions from sick miners’ claims – The Guardian
“Beresfords, a tiny firm of solicitors in Doncaster, has received £123m from the taxpayer by winning compensation claims on behalf of coal miners for work-related diseases, new government figures show.”
The Guardian, 12th October 2007
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Watchdog criticises government for spying on miners – The Guardian
“The Department of Trade and Industry has been criticised by a government watchdog for unjustifiable spying on former coalminers claiming compensation for industrial injuries. The department used investigators in clandestine surveillance operations to verify claims from miners who say they have suffered illnesses from working down the pits.”
The Guardian, 18th August 2007
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Miners’ firms strike back at DTI over £2.4bn costs – The Lawyer
“The under-fire law firms representing sick miners in the British Coal compensation fiasco have accused the Government of hypocrisy after its costs topped £2bn.”
The Lawyer, 15th May 2007
Source: www.thelawyer.com
LCS to approach thousands of miners over fees – Law Society’s Gazette
“The Legal Complaints Service (LCS) is to canvas thousands of former miners directly to determine whether solicitors wrongly deducted fees from their compensation claims.”
Law Society’s Gazette, 3rd May 2007
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Miners’ compensation ‘exploited’ – BBC News
“A scheme for sick miners has been exploited by a few unscrupulous solicitors, a report has claimed.”
BBC News, 25th April 2007
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
