A man from Middlesbrough was left "inches from death" after developing sepsis following a catastrophic injury resulting from the wall in his back garden collapsing. Andrew was featured on BBC One's Northern Justice programme yesterday (Thursday, September 29), which followed his fight for justice.
TeessideLive reports how his "poorly maintained" back garden wall caved in, causing him to suffer the devastating injury to his hand. Days later, someone noticed that Andrew - who doesn't want to reveal his surname - was acting in a confused way.
He was rushed to intensive care and underwent emergency surgery on his hand, which had become septic. His condition was so serious that Andrew was close to losing his hand and possibly his arm.
He said: "I was inches from death. They said, 'we’re going to take the hand off and if it doesn’t work, we’ll take his arm off'."
Having already complained to his housing provider about the state of disrepair at his accommodation, Andrew refused to take the distressing experience lying down. He enlisted the help of Apprentice 2018 candidate and Middlesbrough-based lawyer Sarah Magson, of Watson Woodhouse Solicitors, who launched a private prosecution under the Environmental Protection Act.
The pair won the case, with the owner of Andrew’s property and the neighbouring property being ordered to repair the dangerous wall. However, the judge ruled that the offending parties were not obliged to pay Andrew’s legal costs.
Ms Magson said: "If solicitors can’t represent their clients on a no-win, no-fee basis for individuals like Andrew, it means that they would not be able to go and get the improvements to the property."
Sarah had no choice but to take the case to the High Court and Andrew's legal battle following his horrendous injury was the subject of yesterday's programme.
Northern Justice is a BBC One documentary series following North East-based lawyers as they guide local people through individual legal battles. Each episode focuses on two cases, following the emotional impact on both client and lawyer, and provides invaluable advice for viewers in similar situations.
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