Christopher Malla

Christopher is the Head of the Healthcare Division and a member of the firm’s global strategy board. He trained at Kennedys, qualified as a solicitor in England and Wales in 1997 and was appointed a partner in 2002. He leads a team of clinical negligence lawyers based at our offices in Birmingham, Cambridge and London.

He defends a wide range of clinical negligence claims on behalf of NHS Resolution, medical malpractice insurers and private hospitals and clinics.

Christopher has specialist expertise in dealing with both liability and quantum on high value fetal medicine, cerebral palsy, obstetric and paediatric claims, and is experienced in representing clients at round table meetings and mediations.

Christopher has extensive experience of Periodical Payments Orders and most notably he represented NHS Resolution on the indexation test cases, which proceeded to the Court of Appeal. He advised NHS Resolution following the Lord Chancellor’s announcement that he will be reviewing the discount rate and, in particular, co-ordinated the adjourned discount rate cases following the reduction in the discount rate to minus 0.75% in March 2017.

Christopher is well versed on multi-jurisdictional issues having recently represented NHS Resolution on a birth injury claim where the Claimant was injured in England but now resides in the United States. The NHS Defendant argued a higher discount rate should apply based on United States investment returns. The claim was settled adopting a higher discount rate than minus 0.75%, with Periodical Payments to be paid in United States dollars and index linked to US indices.

Christopher has a particular interest in civil justice reform and has been involved, on Kennedys’ behalf, in numerous government consultations concerning civil justice and clinical negligence. Christopher was a member of the Civil Justice Council’s Working Group on Fixed Recoverable Costs in Clinical Negligence. He was invited to a ministerial briefing on clinical negligence. 
His broad range of skills also see him acting on behalf of manufacturers of medical products and their insurers on product liability claims, including having represented the NHS on the 3M Capital hip implant claims.

Christopher also advises NHS Trusts on a wide range of medical law issues including obtaining emergency declarations and judicial reviews.

He has particular expertise in representing interested parties, particularly NHS Trusts, at inquests. His focus is to support the staff through the coronial process but also to ensure lessons are learnt and improvements made to increase patient safety and avoid regulation 28 reports, commonly known as ‘preventing future death reports’. Christopher is a strong advocate of learning from hospital deaths and in particular the coronial process.

Christopher is a member of Forum of Insurance Lawyers (FOIL).

Christopher frequently delivers training to clients and regularly writes for Kennedys Healthcare Brief and Kennedys Personal Injury Brief, as well as the health and insurance press. He is also a co-author of Kennedys Claims Handling Law and Practice Guide and Catastrophic Personal Injury Guide and author of the Periodical Payment Guide. 

Qualifications

• Qualified in England and Wales in 1997.