About Philip
Philip is a senior civil barrister (bargyfreithiwr) and mediator (cyfryngwr), called to the Bar in 2005 following 10 years of successful practice as a solicitor in South Wales. Since then he has built a thriving national practice at the Bar in the following areas of specialism:
• Costs
• Inquests
• Personal Injury
• Professional & Clinical Negligence
He enjoys a reputation as an approachable advocate and advisor who delivers clear and practical advice, and is popular for being proactive, commercially astute and trusted for his ability to propose sensible solutions to complex issues. He is based near Abergavenny in South Wales with a practice that takes him nationwide.
Philip says “The secret to being a successful advocate is being well-prepared, a good listener and to keep going, even when things look impossible to resolve. I am confident in working with people of all ages and backgrounds, from different cultures and religions, and feel able to communicate clearly what may sometimes be complex issues and ideas in a non-legal, jargon-free language.”
Costs
Philip is regularly instructed in high value costs cases for both paying and receiving parties. His practice frequently brings him before Regional Costs Judges and Masters in the Senior Court Costs Office, where his expertise in navigating complex costs issues is highly sought after in attending:
• High value costs disputes
• Detailed assessments
• Preliminary issue hearings
• Oral hearings and appeals
Inquests
Philip has considerable experience in inquests and is known for his sympathetic approach when representing bereaved clients. He has appeared before coroners sitting alone and with a jury in cases involving:
• Fatal road traffic accidents
• Deaths in care homes
• Fatal accidents in outdoor activities
• Workplace fatalities, including construction sites
• Hospital and treatment-related fatalities
• Suicides linked to mental health issues
Personal Injury
Throughout his career, Philip has advised and represented clients in numerous personal injury cases, including:
• Road traffic/motor claims, including fraud/fundamental dishonesty/contrived accidents and motorcycle claims
• Employer’s Liability/Health and safety matters
• Occupiers Liability
• Highways Act matters
Professional and Clinical Negligence
Philip’s expertise also extends to professional and clinical negligence, encompassing:
• Solicitor’s negligence
• Professional negligence in property transactions
• Personal injury actions for failure to issue within the limitation period and undervaluation of claims
• Matrimonial ancillary relief cases
• Clinical negligence cases against GPs, surgeons, and NHS trusts for negligent diagnosis, prognosis, and surgery
Notable Cases
Barr -v- Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust
This involved a clinical negligence claim, where a ‘never event’ occurred during surgery. The Claimant’s solicitors entered into a CFA and incepted an ATE policy to cover liability and causation experts reports, with a view that the costs of the ATE policy premium would be recoverable under SI 2013 No.739. Defendant’s counsel, Philip Hodder, raised issues at the oral assessment that it was unreasonable for the Claimant to enter into such an ATE policy at the stage it was incepted and therefore the Defendant paying party should not be burdened with the costs of the ATE. DJ Phillips found in favour of the paying party. Philip Hodder was instructed by Acumension Ltd for the Defendant.
Malone -v- Birmingham Community NHS Trust
Philip Hodder was responsible for the original claim before DJ Marshall Phillips when Claimant’s costs were struck out. The ruling relates to a second Appeal which was also struck out. He was again instructed by Acumension Ltd.
Personal
Philip is a qualified CSIA Level 1 Alpine Ski Instructor, a UKCP 1 performance ski coach and assistant racing ski coach. A former Junior and Senior county squash player, he is also a 1st Dan in Taekwondo.