Miners’ compensation: why did some solicitors take too big a slice of the pie? – The Guardian

“Despite delivering £4bn for sick miners and their families, exploitation by some solicitors cast a shadow over the profession.”

Full story

The Guardian, 8th March 2011

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Ex-miners claim injuries were under-compensated – BBC News

“A group of former miners who suffered industrial injuries are claiming they received inadequate compensation from a government scheme.”

Full story

BBC News, 18th August 2010

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Coal miners pursue law firms over ‘undersettled’ compensation – Law Society’s Gazette

“The first known court actions against law firms for alleged undersettlement of sick coal miners’ government compensation claims will begin preliminary hearings in mid-August, the Gazette has learned. A number of defendant firms have already settled out of court.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 29th July 2010

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

UK court action over Congolese ‘illegal minerals’ – BBC News

“Legal action has been launched against the UK for allegedly failing to refer firms trading in ‘conflict minerals’ from DR Congo for UN sanctions.”

Full story

BBC News, 26th July 2010

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Miners’ solicitors to face court action – Law Society’s Gazette

“Solicitors who handled sick coal miners’ government compensation claims are set to appear before courts across the country, as the first known court actions for alleged undersettlement of such claims begin to emerge.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 4th March 2010

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Miners’ solicitors bombard government with FoI requests – Law Society’s Gazette

“The government has been overloaded with freedom of information (FoI) requests made by solicitors acting for former coal miners ahead of the first coordinated negligence action for alleged under-settlement of government compensation claims.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 18th February 2010

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Solicitors who took millions from miners lose appeal – BBC news

“Solicitors who took millions of pounds from compensation payouts given to sick miners have lost their appeal against being struck off for misconduct.”

Full story

BBC New, 2nd December 2009

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Sick miners ‘are owed millions’ – BBC News

“About 150,000 sick miners and their families are still owed £100m by solicitors who wrongly charged them for compensation claims, an MP says.”

Full story

BBC News, 13th September 2009

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Solicitors hand back £1.5m to miners under voluntary scheme – Law Society’s Gazette

“Solicitors have handed back more than £1.5m to injured former miners under a new voluntary repayment scheme after wrongly deducting fees from miners’ government compensation awards – and this figure could rise further as the project rolls on, the Gazette can reveal.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 10th September 2009

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Miners win negligence payouts from solicitors over coal health claims – Law Society’s Gazette

“Injured miners who successfully sued their former solicitors for under-settling coal health compensation claims have won tens of thousands of pounds in settlements, it has emerged.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 6th August 2009

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

News focus: miners’ compensation – Law Society’s Gazette

“The work that solicitors have done under the mineworkers’ compensation scheme has attracted the attention of press, parliament and the public ever since details of wrongdoing began to emerge earlier this decade. But the debate has focused on two controversies: the millions of pounds that solicitors have earned, and the deductions that some solicitors made from miners’ compensation.”

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 30th July 2009

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Struck off: lawyer who made £13m from sick miners – The Times

“A former television presenter who became one of Britain’s highest-earning solicitors has been struck off for ‘disgraceful’ misconduct in his handling of sick miners’ compensation claims.”

Full story

The Times, 1st May 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Six lawyers at Raleys guilty of misconduct over £7m miners’ awards – The Times

“Three solicitors whose deal with Arthur Scargill led their firm to slice £7.7 million from compensation awards to sick coalminers were suspended yesterday for professional misconduct.”

Full story

The Times, 18th February 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Miners’ solicitors breached code – BBC News

“Solicitors in South Yorkshire deliberately breached a code of conduct to collect £32m in fees from miners’ compensation claims, a tribunal ruled.”

Full story

BBC News, 17th February 2009

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Government ‘repeating mistakes’ by fighting miners in court – The Guardian

“The government is spending millions of pounds in legal fees fighting the claims of sick miners in a move that lawyers say will recreate the mistakes of the past.”

Full story

The Guardian, 12th January 2009

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

£6m of sick miners’ awards went to Arthur Scargill’s union – The Times

“Arthur Scargill’s trade union was paid more than £6 million by a firm of solicitors that deducted the money from compensation awarded to sick miners for industrial disease, a tribunal was told.”

Full story

The Times, 7th January 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

More solicitors to face tribunal over coalminers’ scandal – The Times

“Solicitors across Britain are bracing themselves for further sanctions over the coalminers’ compensation scandal that led to two lawyers being struck off for dishonesty.”

Full story

The Times, 13th December 2008

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Struck off: lawyers who milked sick miners for millions – The Independent

“A solicitor who became Britain’s richest lawyer was yesterday struck off after being found guilty of creaming millions of pounds from compensation paid to sick miners. Jim Beresford, 58, and his partner Douglas Smith, 52, were also ordered to pay substantial costs for serious professional misconduct over the handling of personal injury claims made under a compensation scheme for miners suffering coal dust-related diseases and other injuries.”

Full story

The Independent, 12th December 2008

Source: www.independent.co.uk

We did nothing wrong in making millions out of sick miners, law firm tells tribunal – The Times

“A law firm that earned £141 million from a government industrial disease compensation scheme denied yesterday that it had exploited sick miners and their families.”

Full story

The Times, 20th November 2008

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

SRA comes under fire in Beresfords tribunal – The Lawyer

“The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) was accused of ignoring ‘false information’ and holding a ‘biased’ investigation, as the disciplinary tribunal against the coalminers lawyer Jim Beresford continued today.”

Full story

The Lawyer, 18th November 2008

Source: www.thelawyer.com

Solicitors accused over ‘dubious deals’ with union official that cost sick miners thousands – The Times

“Britain’s highest-earning solicitor acted dishonestly and with ‘conscious impropriety’ in dealings with a mining union that led to his firm handling thousands of industrial disease compensation claims, a tribunal heard yesterday.”

Full story

The Times, 18th November 2008

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Solicitors ‘misled’ sick miners – BBC News

“Two solicitors who won personal injury claims for thousands of miners have appeared before a tribunal accused of taking cuts from compensation pay-outs.”

Full story

BBC News, 17th November 2008

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Jim Beresford’s firm made £16.7m in year handling miners’ compensation claims – The Times

“Jim Beresford gained the dubious distinction of being the ‘highest-earning solicitor in Britain’ through the profits generated by his firm’s handling of miners’ compensation claims.”

Full story

The Times, 14th November 2008

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Miners’ compensation: third of solicitors now flout rules on secret payments to win work – The Times

“The legal profession faces a radical overhaul of a multimillion-pound trade in which thousands of solicitors fork out confidential payments or commission to obtain work.”

Full story

The Times, 14th November 2008

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

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.”

Full story

Legal Week, 12th June 2008

Source: www.legalweek.com

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.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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’.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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.”

Full story

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.” 

Full story

BBC News, 25th April 2007

Source: www.bbc.co.uk