About Leigh Day
Leigh Day is proud to be a Legal Partner for Make Birth Better. Leigh Day is a claimant-only law firm known for its commitment to patient safety. They are recognised as specialists in medical negligence and ranked tier 1 by the two foremost legal directories, Chambers & Partners and The Legal 500.
Leigh Day’s medical negligence team help those who have been injured as a result of substandard care by a medical professional. Their experienced and expert team of Medical Negligence lawyers work across a wide range of areas, including high value claims for maternal injury, Cerebral Palsy, brain injury, spinal injury, amputation and fatal accidents litigation.
In the last 35 years their lawyers have represented women and birthing people who have suffered debilitating physical injuries as a result of substandard maternity care, which have often also had a profound impact on their mental health. They have listened to the stories of many women and birthing people who have been harmed by medical professionals, and whose symptoms and concerns have been dismissed and/or misdiagnosed.
The firm has a proud history of campaigning for patients’ rights and patient safety. Leigh Day are committed to women’s rights and raise awareness of healthcare issues through our annual Women’s Rights in Healthcare conference, which highlights important areas such as discrimination and inequality in women’s healthcare.
Leigh Day lawyers are consistently praised for their extensive experience and expertise in dealing with cases involving complex and catastrophic injuries. Many of their lawyers have been instrumental in the development of the law in medical negligence cases and in achieving some of the highest-value settlements for our clients.
To find out more, please visit - www.leighday.co.uk
About the team
Profile and biographies of our contacts at Leigh Day.
Suzanne White, Partner and Head of Medical Negligence department.
Suzanne is a passionate women’s rights in healthcare campaigner, with a particular interest in maternal health. She has successfully secured substantial amounts of compensation for people who have suffered serious injuries a result of medical negligence.
Suzanne is a member of the APIL executive, a trustee of the Patients Association, a member of the INQUEST Lawyers Group, and is a council member of MASIC.
Contact: swhite@leighday.co.uk
020 7650 1216
Meet Suzanne
“Over the course of my career I have seen the lasting impact birth trauma has. It’s not just the physical injury, but also the ongoing mental health issues. There can be a financial impact if the mother is no longer able to work, marriages break down because there’s extra pressures on the relationship, and the family as a whole. The impact is far-reaching and can last a lifetime.
Make Birth Better do such important work to break down the taboo around traumatic birth experiences, increase awareness and we are extremely proud to partner with them.”
Despina Kavadas is a Partner at Leigh Day, specialising in medical negligence.
Despina is passionate about women's rights in healthcare and patient safety, especially around pregnancy and birth. She acts for clients bringing compensation claims because of negligent medical treatment and has been working in this field since 2002.
Her clients include women whose babies have brain damage because their births were mismanaged, or who were injured themselves during the labour and delivery.
Contact: dkavadas@leighday.co.uk
020 7650 1200
Meet Despina
“I have been a medical negligence solicitor for over 21 years acting for clients who have been harmed in the medical setting. In that time, I have represented many women who have suffered physical and psychiatric injuries as a result of negligent treatment during their pregnancy, labour, delivery and in the postnatal period. Birth trauma is real and has devastating consequences not only on the woman who has suffered it but on all those around her. Make Birth Better are instrumental in raising awareness and making a change. I feel very proud that Leigh Day is a partner and that I can join them on this journey to give women a voice.”