Most people prefer to avoid thinking about this. Everyone does their best of course – though a little thought often reveals that they are taking more risks than they would choose to do so. And the public are getting more litigious – especially if making a claim enables them to avoid paying for advice they didn’t like.

When I present my talks on ‘How to avoid negligence claims‘ I often start by asking the attendees if the thought of a PI claim ever keeps them up at night. Most say ‘no’, others reply ‘sometimes’ and a few answer ‘yes’ and add further comments:

• · Convinced my knowledge is not as uptodate as it should be but working on it
• · Anyone doing a proper job will be sued at some point in time;
• · Could lose everything;
• · Failure to recognise a claim or a potential claim;
• · Fear of getting it wrong;
• · I have discovered some ‘Donald Rumsfeld’ type “unknown unknowns”;
• · I know I don’t know everything!
• · Because even though conscious of PI issues I am always prone to human error;
• · Due to the ever-changing laws, regulations and the purposive construction of the law;
• · In case I do something wrong that I’m not aware of.
• · Lack of internal controls;
• · Professional image, loss of clients, disciplinary issues with the Institute;
• · Reputational impact and interpretation of advice;
• · Some clients may misinterpret the advice we gave them;
• · Sometimes – if I know I have made a mistake.
• · The law is changing very rapidly and it’s difficult to keep up to date;

I accept that there is little point worrying about something over which you have no control. Remember the old adage: Worry is like a rocking horse; it gives you something to do but doesn’t get you anywhere.

The key point I am driving at when I ask the question during my talk though is whether you are aware of the risks you run in your practice and are taking an appropriate amount of precautions to limit the downside. As some of the respondents implied above, you cannot be in practice, whatever your profession, and not run the risk of making a mistake that costs a client money or of a dissatisfied client alleging that you have been negligent. Equally you cannot operate effectively if you are constantly worried about these risks.

In my talk about How to avoid professional negligence claims I encourage attendees to recognise that the risk of problems arising can be distinguished between those likely to have a big impact and those that will have little impact. Equally some problems are more likely to occur than others. Your response to different risks should depend upon their potential likelihood and their potential impact.

Readers are welcome to attend my next half day seminar on Friday 19 February: How to avoid professional negligence claims. And if you book this week you can avoid the late booking fee too!