Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Negligence definition

What does Negligence mean? In legal practice, negligence describes a failure to take reasonable care that results in foreseeable harm or loss. It is proved by establishing: (i) a duty of care, (ii) breach of that duty measured against the objective standard of a reasonable person, (iii) causation (factual “but for” cause and legal scope/remoteness), and (iv) recoverable damage. The concept is defined and developed by case law. A classic formulation is that negligence is omitting what a reasonable person would do, or doing what a prudent person would not (Blyth v Birmingham Waterworks (1856) 11 Ex Ch 781). The test is objective: the

Precedent: Pre-Action Protocol Letter of Claim for Barrister’s Professional Negligence (England and Wales)

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Precedents

[ ON THE CLAIMANT’S SOLICITORS’ HEADED PAPER ]

Our reference: [ insert your file reference for this matter ]
FAO: [ INSERT RELEVANT NAME ]
[ NAME OF DEFENDANT BARRISTER ]
[ ADDRESS LINE 1 ]
[ ADDRESS LINE 2 ]
[ POSTCODE ]
[ DATE ]

Dear [ insert name ]

[ PROSPECTIVE CLAIMANT’S NAME ] AND [ PROSPECTIVE DEFENDANT’S NAME ]

LETTER OF CLAIM

[ We refer to our correspondence dated [ insert date of your preliminary notice of claim, if sent ]. ]

[ That correspondence comprised a preliminary notice of claim issued under the pre-action Protocol for Professional negligence, which requested your acknowledgement by [ insert date ]. ]

[ We confirm receipt of your letter dated [ insert date ] acknowledging the preliminary notice. However, we still require confirmation that your professional insurers have been notified of the circumstances of our client’s claim against you. Please also provide them with a copy of this letter and confirm to us that you have done so... ]

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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