Williams v Fraser

Williams commenced proceedings against Fraser, a neurosurgeon, alleging medical negligence in the failure to diagnose a pars defect which subsequently developed to compress the spinal cord. Fraser sought to strike out the plaintiff's reliance on an expert report, arguing it was not filed in accordance with the relevant practice directions. Fraser also opposed the plaintiff's application to reconvene a joint expert causation conclave and to file and serve a further amended statement of claim. The court considered whether the plaintiff should be permitted to rely on the expert report, whether the conclave should be reconvened, and whether the plaintiff could file and serve a further amended statement of claim.

The court held that the plaintiff could rely on the expert report despite it not being filed in accordance with the relevant practice directions. The court found that Fraser had not been disadvantaged by the late filing of the report, as the contents were already known to him and the report was only being relied upon for the purpose of the application for leave. The court also held that a joint expert causation conclave should be reconvened as it would be in the interests of justice to do so, and that the plaintiff could file and serve a further amended statement of claim.

Accordingly, the court granted the plaintiff leave to rely on the expert report, ordered that the joint expert causation conclave be reconvened, and permitted the plaintiff to file and serve a further amended statement of claim. The court also made orders as to costs.