Tamlin Bolton, Senior Associate in our Medical Negligence team has featured in the November edition on the AvMA Lawyers Service Newsletter discussing the recent updates in the Lucy Letby inquiry.

Switalskis represent a significant number of the families in the civil cases, and are now looking at the timeline of events inside the Neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Trust, and the concerns raised by Consultant Paediatricians to senior management along the timeline.

Going forward the Police have made it clear they intend to review the medical records of 4,000 children across the Countess of Chester Hospital and Liverpool Women’s Hospital, where Letby worked, as part of Operation Hummingbird.

In tandem with this a statutory inquiry will also take place.

Commenting in the publication, Tamlin said: “The UK Government have confirmed that a statutory inquiry will now take place. The initial options were for an independent inquiry or a statutory inquiry. Both had merit and both had drawbacks. What really matters is twofold; we have to bear in mind that the families involved in these crimes trusted the NHS to look after their babies. They have undoubtedly lost confidence in the NHS and will need continual reassurance that the NHS fully comply with an inquiry.”

Adding: “Our concern has always been, if we put the families through another lengthy process about what happened to their children and we give those concerned doctors an opportunity to present their concerns, then the entire process is fruitless if we reach the end of that process without having considered key internal evidence from the NHS Trust. To know the upcoming Inquiry is a statutory Inquiry, where witnesses are compelled to provide evidence and disclosure can be ordered gives some reassurance that the Trust will cooperate and provide the answers these families need.”

Lady Justice Thirlwall was appointed as Inquiry chair on 4 September 2023 shortly after the conviction of Lucy Letby. She will lead an investigation into the issues surrounding the events that led to Lucy Letby committing the heinous crimes she did.

Hearings are set to take place in the Autumn of 2024 at the earliest due to 4 other events that will precede these hearings, which include the ongoing Operation Hummingbird, Letby’s appeal and the re-trial set to take place in June 2024.

Read the article in the full, from page 28, in the AvMA Lawyers Service Newsletter here .

If you have been impacted by the actions of Lucy Letby, contact our specialist medical negligence lawyers on 0800 138 0458 or email: help@switalskis.com .