Welcome to the PNLA! We can help you to find a lawyer

You will have agreed with the engaged professional that they would give you accurate advice or information. If they did not give you the correct advice or information and you would have been better off financially if they had done so, then you may have a claim for professional negligence.

PNLA lawyers cover legal jurisdictions in England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and The Republic of Ireland. There are differences in the applicable law and procedure so the first step is to choose a lawyer or specialist in the right jurisdiction for your claim.

Many lawyers will travel to meet you. Whether you are a company director or a private individual we can find the right lawyer for you. Our members come from large commercial practices experienced in claims for multi millions, to those who will act for private individuals with claims in the tens of thousands. Many will be happy to act for you whether the claim is for your business or you personally.

There are many scenarios that can lead to a professional negligence claim, and here are just a few of the more common ones that we assist with:

• Buying a property which has a defect in the structure, planning or legal title
• Construction projects where the design or engineering is incorrect
• Bad advice about investments which may be funded by a mortgage or pension
• Transactions where the contract does not include all the terms required
• Company failures arising from breach of statutory duties by directors and officers
• Insolvency mismanagement
• Audits which do not reveal a fraud
• Failed tax schemes promoted by professional advisers
• A will which is ineffective or has unintended tax or other consequences
• Trusts where the money or assets have been misappropriated
• Insurance cover being declined after inadequate advice from a broker
• Personal Injury or other civil litigation where a time limit has been missed or a dispute settled at a level of undervalue.
• A criminal conviction where the lawyer has not put all the defences or evidence before the Court or where police or prison authorities have acted wrongly
• Matrimonial financial provision or family and childcare disputes where there has been inadequate preparation or progress
• Employment disputes which have failed through negligent legal support
• Excessive professional costs being charged when there was alternative funding available or for other reasons of inadequate service

Please seek urgent advice if the dispute happened a long time ago, as claims can become time barred. In England & Wales this is a substantial risk if the claim arose more than six years ago.

You will be able to find a suitable expert in our Specialists section, which covers a wide range of professions, so that you can choose the best expert with the relevant experience for your needs and claim on a ‘like for like’ basis. For example you will need an expert opinion from a surveyor to assess whether your surveyor was negligent.

To assess whether your claim is financially worthwhile, the amount of your loss will be an important factor. This needs to be compared with the legal costs you are likely to pay. For example, in England & Wales no legal costs can be recovered for most types of claims less than £10,000 (the Small Claims limit).