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Civil Liberties & Human Rights

Victims of Crime

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Susie Labinjoh
Partner
Claire Brigham
Claire Brigham
Partner
Cormac McDonough
Cormac McDonough
Partner
Jocelyn Cockburn
Jocelyn Cockburn
Partner
Maria O'Connell
Maria O’Connell
Partner
Sasha Barton
Sasha Barton
Partner
Alisha McSporran
Paralegal
Aniqa Khan
Paralegal
Aston Luff
Aston Luff
Solicitor
Brid Doherty
Bríd Doherty
Associate
Charlotte Sykes
Charlotte Sykes
Solicitor
Darcey Hayes
Paralegal
Gimhani Eriyagolla
Gimhani Eriyagolla
Associate
Guy Mitchell
Guy Mitchell
Solicitor
Isabelle Robson
Isabelle Robson
Paralegal
Lottie Baldwin
Lottie Baldwin
Solicitor
Megan Finnis
Megan Finnis
Solicitor
Rebecca Shotton
Rebecca Shotton
Solicitor
Ronan Stewart
Rónán Stewart
Trainee
Ruth Waters-Falk
Ruth Waters-Falk
Solicitor
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Sabrina Pinto
Paralegal
Sarah Flanagan
Sarah Flanagan
Associate
Sebastian Del Monte
Sebastian Del Monte
Solicitor
Shakti Bhagwansingh
Shakti Bhagwansingh
Solicitor
Sion Morgan
Sion Morgan
Solicitor
Stephen Hare
Stephen Hare
Paralegal

We help victims of crime secure justice and compensation where the criminal justice system has failed to protect them or treated them unfairly.

Our Civil Liberties team has years of experience in helping victims of crime get justice and compensation. We’ve brought claims against the police and Ministry of Justice under the Human Rights Act 1998 for failing to properly and effectively investigate sexual assaults and assaults.

We’ve secured compensation and forced law enforcement authorities to investigate or re-open investigations. We’ve judicially reviewed decisions not to prosecute suspects, resulting in prosecutions being pursued.

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Victim of crime

Many of those who come to us for help believe the police, Crown Prosecution Service and other agencies haven’t investigated the crime properly, haven’t done enough to protect them or to prevent others from suffering the same crime again.

Sometimes, it’s the victims of the crime themselves who are investigated without proper justification from the police. In other cases, people suffer injuries as a result of violent crimes, cannot work or suffer other financial loss as a result, and look for some kind of compensation either from their attacker, or from the government.

"THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT OVER THE YEARS, GOING THE EXTRA MILE TO HELP OUR SON IN HIS DISTRESS."

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Featured cases

Our lawyers are nationally recognised for helping victims of crime in some of the most sensitive and high profile cases over many years.

  • Hodge Jones & Allen solicitors brought a judicial review against the Director of Public Prosecutions for his decision not to prosecute anyone for the murder of Stephen Lawrence. Subsequently, the investigation into the death was reopened. In January 2012 two men were convicted of his murder.
  • We’ve helped individuals sue those who have assaulted them. We brought a successful challenge on behalf of a victim who had been sexually abused as a child and who years later made a report to the police resulting in a conviction. We sued his attacker, recovering a five figure sum. Our lawyers have also been instructed to investigate allegations against Jimmy Savile for sexual abuse, particularly in relation to alleged victims at Stoke Mandeville.
  • We represented the family of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter. Fiona took the drastic step of killing herself and her daughter after years of anti-social abuse. The family settled their claim against Leicestershire Police in 2012, as the force accepted there were failures in their systems, which meant that Fiona’s pleas for help weren’t acted upon.
Contact our specialist team on
0330 822 3451
or request a call back.

“The whole legal team are professional and empathetic with excellent communication.” “They are excellent in all regards, and are extremely kind, patient and helpful.” “The quality of their lawyers, the work they generate and the way they handle cases are excellent.” – Chambers UK, 2023

“Hodge Jones & Allen’s expertise and passion in this field are truly outstanding. Their comprehensive approach, combined with their deep understanding of the legal complexities involved, allows them to deliver impactful representation” – Legal 500, 2024

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Criminal injury claims

We can help the victims of violent crimes apply for compensation under the Government’s Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. Some people may have suffered significant physical and psychiatric injury and have lost large sums of money through, for example, not being able to work for a long period. They may not have a claim against the police or any other body, and they cannot  sue their attacker, either because they don’t know who or where they are or because their attacker doesn’t have any money.

The government scheme compensates people for the injuries they’ve suffered. This is both physical and psychiatric, and it also pays out money for certain financial losses.

We will help you with every stage of the compensation application process. We ensure we get every bit of evidence we need to maximise your chances of getting the award you deserve. We have a proven track record in recovering significant sums for many victims, and for challenging awards where we consider them to be too low.

We’ve also helped many individuals fight refusals of compensation  as their applications have been unsuccessful. For example, where they are out of time or where the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority thinks the applicant has delayed in reporting to the police or hasn’t fully cooperated with them or if they think the injuries suffered are too minor.

We have succeeded in reviewing, appealing and judicially reviewing refusal decisions and have represented applicants in oral appeal hearings in the First Tier Tribunal and judicial review hearings in the Upper Tribunal.

 

Contact our specialist team on
0330 822 3451
or request a call back.
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"In terms of their knowledge of the case law, they are impressive." Chambers UK, 2021