Is a mother giving birth a primary or secondary victim in a claim for negligent treatment?

RE v Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust [2017] EWHC 824 (QB) involved a claim relating to negligent treatment during a child’s birth that resulted in the child suffering cerebral palsy (CP). The case also involved psychological injury claims for mother and grandmother (the father’s claim was discontinued).

The main CP claim was successful which left the claims for nervous shock. The key questions to be addressed were whether the mother was a primary victim and whether the event was sufficiently sudden and shocking as to entitle the grandmother (and the mother if it was found that she was a secondary victim) damages for psychiatric injury.

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