Healthcare Regulatory Services

We have an in-depth and specialised understanding of the key issues faced within the healthcare sector and advise both individual healthcare professionals and organisations on all aspects of professional regulation and discipline.

To speak to a solicitor about allegations of professional misconduct in the healthcare sector, contact us by calling 0345 872 6666 or by filling in our online enquiry form to request a callback. If your matter is urgent, our solicitors can be reached by using our 24-hour legal helpline 0345 872 6666 so you have access to expert legal advice whenever you need it.

Our expertise includes acting on behalf of these healthcare professionals:

• Doctors
• Dentists
• Nurses
• Pharmacists
• Care providers
• Chiropractors
• Midwives
• Opticians
• Osteopaths

We have also helped a large number of public and private sector healthcare providers and some of the most renowned independent hospitals in the country.

Investigations Related to Fitness to Practise

We defend healthcare professionals from the outset of all fitness-to-practise investigations, including Interim Order Panel hearings, before the following bodies:

• General Medical Council
• General Dental Council
• Nursing and Midwifery Council
• General Pharmaceutical Council
• General Optical Council
• General Chiropractic Council
• General Osteopathic Council
• Health & Care Professions Council

Our service extends to advising healthcare providers on thresholds for involvement of National Clinical Assessment Service (NCAS) and/or regulatory bodies. We also advise healthcare professionals in management positions on their obligations and the protection of their own professional positions while discharging their management responsibilities. 

Coroner’s Inquest and Public Inquiries Representation

The solicitors at JMW have extensive experience acting at Coroner’s Inquests and Public Inquiries. We have also represented healthcare professionals at numerous hearings, including complex Human Rights Act Article Two inquests, inquests before a jury, statutory inquiries, such as the Francis Inquiry and the Redfern Inquiry, and inquests arising from:

• Prison deaths
• The death of patients detained under the Mental Health Act
• Maternal deaths
• Neonatal deaths  

Criminal Investigations and Proceedings

Working with the business crime and regulation department, we defend healthcare providers in relation to criminal investigations concerning their work. We have helped healthcare professionals who have been accused of the following:

• Substance misuse
• Corporate manslaughter
• Health and safety breaches
• Motoring offences
• Financial misconduct
• Sexual offences

Advice on Investigations, Disputes, Market Entry and Complaints

We represent healthcare professionals in relation to the following investigations, disputes, market entry and complaints:

• Investigations and disputes involving the NHS
• Investigations involving the National Clinical Assessment Service (NCAS)
• Investigations and disputes involving the NHS England Local Area Team (formerly Primary Care Trust)
• Investigations involving serious incident requiring investigation (SIRIs) and serious untoward incidents (SUI)
• Complaints to the Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS)
• Complaints to the Dental Complaints Service
• Appeals to the Family Health Service Appeals Unit (FHSAU)
• Applications for marketing entry, including pharmaceutical, medical or dental performers lists
• Disputes and appeals related to pharmaceutical, medical or dental performers lists

With some of these areas crossing over into the area of employment law, we will work closely with our employment law department to ensure you receive comprehensive legal advice. 

Applying for Professional Registration

We are experts in the complex area of professional registrations law and can advise in relation to the following:

• Applications for registration, including Registration Appeals Panel and former Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board (PMETB) hearings
• Applications for specialist registration (for example, Certificate of Eligibility for Specialist Registration (CESR) or Certificate of Eligibility for GP registration (CEGPR)
• Applications for revalidation
• Licence to Practise applications
• Employment of international medical graduates (IMGs) and visiting specialists
• EU rights
• Issues related to the Care Quality Commission (CQC), including registration, responding to statutory requirement notices and defending applications for urgent closure and prosecutions

Compliance with Healthcare Legislation

We advise on a wide range of healthcare-related legislation, including:

• Information governance, including data protection and freedom of information
• Consent
• Mental capacity
• Court of Protection
• Human Tissue Act 2004
• Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards