By Eric King And Lucy Caulkett-
A leading medical negligence solicitor jailed for stealing £711,000 from vulnerable clients after representing them in multi-million pound litigation claims against the NHS is a disgrace to the legal profession.
Marcus Nickson, a partner at the defunct KJ Commons & Co Ltd in Carlisle, Cumbria, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud at Preston Crown Court yesterday. He is an example of bent solicitors whose respectable profession must never be seen as an automatic green line to integrity. Solicitors are generally expected to respect the law, but bent ones surface every so often.
The 66 year old stole cash from the family of a baby suffering with brain damage, and a young man who had suffered a stroke aged
It took the murder of his partner in the firm, Kevin Commons by gunman Derrick Bird, for the crook to be caught. After David Dawson became head of the firm’s Clinical Negligence and Personal Injury Department in January 2013, and took over the files of Nickson’s two clients.In December 2017 Nickson, of Blencogo, Wigton, was charged with theft.
One of his victims was awarded £3.5m by the NHS after Nickson represented him in court. The baby had been left with severe quadriplegic cerebral palsy after failings during her birth in 1999.The youngster tragically died at the age of 12. However, in 2010, after the financial settlement for her and her family had been obtained, the lawyer stole £104,688.87 from the trust fund which had been set up for her care. Dodgy Nixon didn’t stop his fraudulent schemes there.
Another victim of his- a 22-year-old who had suffered a stroke which went undetected was awarded more than £3m damages. He will need ongoing care for life. Fraudulent Nickson stole £606,193.36 from his settlement too
The youngster tragically died at the age of 12. However, in 2010, after the financial settlement for her and her family had been obtained, the lawyer stole £104,688.87 from the trust fund which had been set up for her care. Dodgy Nixon didn’t stop his fraudulent schemes there.
Nickson admitted stealing a total of £711,000 from the individual awards made to his clients – in addition to the costs he was awarded. The court heard both offences contained an element of false accounting after Nickson charged huge legal fees to the families after telling them the charges would be minimal.
Judge Simon Newell said: “It is hard to imagine anything else other than a high degree of trust when the parent or parents of brain damaged children seeking damages from the medical authorities place their trust in their legal advisors.
“It seems to be like the trust one would place in one’s teacher, surgeon or priest.”One of his victims – a baby who was left with severe quadriplegic cerebral palsy after failings during her birth in 1999 – was awarded £3.5m damages from the NHS after Nickson represented her in court.
The youngster tragically died at the age of 12. However, in 2010, after the financial settlement for her and her family had been obtained, the lawyer stole £104,688.87 from the trust fund which had been set up for her care. Dodgy Nixon didn’t stop his fraudulent schemes there.
His other victim, a 22-year-old who had suffered a stroke which went undetected was awarded more than £3m damages. He will need ongoing care for life, but between 2007 and 2011, Nickson stole £606,193.36 from his settlement. The court awarded to cover Nickson’s services in representing the families, along with expert witnesses and barristers.
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