Prisons
We can help with prisoner discrimination and disability cases, prisoner healthcare and human rights claims
Leigh Day's prison team advises on prisoner discrimination and disability cases, prisoner healthcare and human rights claims
Leigh Day’s prison team acts exclusively for people who are in prison or who have been in prison. Our work includes private law claims for compensation, public law claims for judicial review and inquests. We cover a broad range of litigation, but our focus is on discrimination, healthcare and inquest cases.
We are recognised as leading solicitors for this type of work by both independent legal directories in the UK (Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners). We are also members of the Association of Prison Lawyers, which means we are part of a group of specialist prison solicitors.
We can offer legal aid and no win, no fee funding.
What the directories say
The team is full of great lawyers who are able and passionate about the work that they do.
Legal 500 2021
Find out more about the work we do
We regularly act for prisoners in claims of discrimination including disability, race, religion, sex, age, gender reassignment and sexual orientation. Those claims might include where:
- There has been a delay or a failure to meet a prisoner’s mobility or personal care needs;
- There has been a decision to operate a policy or practice which treats a prisoner unfairly because of their age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation; and
- There has been a failure to take a prisoner’s age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation into account when putting a policy or practice into force.
We act in claims of clinical negligence, personal injury and breach of human rights on behalf of prisoners who have suffered injury whilst in prison or whilst in hospital. Examples of such claims include where:
- There has been a decision to refuse a prisoner access to treatment;
- There has been a delay or a failure in a prisoner being diagnosed with an illness or receiving treatment for that illness; and
- There have been mistakes when providing a prisoner with treatment for an illness.
We also represent bereaved families at all stages of Coroner’s Inquest proceedings arising out of deaths in prison, including:
- Deaths arising from a failure to provide adequate healthcare to a prisoner;
- Deaths arising from suicide, where there has been a failure to protect the prisoner from suicide or self-harm; and
- Deaths arising from a failure to protect a prisoner from violence within a prison.
Read our prison team leaflet
News and blogs
Coroner calls for better guidance for prisons on hooch and medication following death of prisoner
A coroner has raised concerns over the lack of guidance and national policy for prisons on dealing with illicitly brewed ‘hooch’ alcohol and the handling of medication, following the death of a Portsmouth man in HMP Guys Marsh prison.
Inquest finds inadequate care contributed to the death of Frazer Williams who took his life at HMP Guys Marsh
Inadequate diagnosis and treatment of Frazer Williams’ mental health condition was among the probable causes of the 28-year-old’s death at HMP Guy’s Marsh, a jury unanimously found.
Guidance for judges sentencing pregnant women changed following annual consultation
New guidance on relevant considerations for judges and magistrates sentencing pregnant and post-natal women has been announced.
Prisoner aged 18 gave birth in HMP Bronzefield cell alone at night
An 18-year-old prisoner gave birth in her cell alone at night and her calls for help went unanswered, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has found in a critical report.