Birth Injury Solicitors in Bradford

If your baby, or you as a mother, were harmed during pregnancy, labour or shortly after birth, and you think the care fell below an acceptable standard, our medical negligence team in Bradford can look at what happened and explain your options. Your first conversation is free and confidential.

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Our Bradford office

Cooper Hall Solicitors, Unit 3, Campus Road, Listerhills Science Park, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD7 1HR. Telephone 01274 488877.

We’re a firm of solicitors authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA No. 639467), and we hold the Law Society’s Lexcel accreditation. Birth injury enquiries are handled by our medical negligence solicitors: Sadaf Tariq, head of medical negligence and serious injury claims, and Farhan Khan.

We can meet you at our office, or speak by phone or video if that’s easier with a new baby. If it’s hard for you to get to the office, we can arrange a home visit when needed.

Maternity care in Bradford

Most births in Bradford take place at Bradford Royal Infirmary, which is run by Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Families in Keighley and the north of the district often give birth at Airedale General Hospital in Steeton, which is run by Airedale NHS Foundation Trust.

Inspection reports and ratings for both are published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and social care in England. Its page for Bradford Royal Infirmary includes maternity services. The CQC rated maternity services there as good after an inspection in September 2025 (report published 28 November 2025). Its latest trust-level report, an assessment of the trust’s leadership, was published on 27 March 2026. Reports for Airedale are on the CQC’s Airedale page.

You can read them yourself. A rating does not show whether the care in any individual case was negligent; that depends on the facts of your own care. We also help families whose care was provided at other hospitals and birth centres, by community midwives or by GPs.

Birth injuries we can help with

• Brain injury from lack of oxygen during labour (hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy, or HIE), which can lead to cerebral palsy
• Delays in acting on abnormal heart-rate monitoring, or in arranging an assisted or caesarean delivery
• Shoulder dystocia and brachial plexus (Erb’s palsy) injuries
• Missed or untreated infection, including Group B Strep, sepsis and meningitis in newborns
• Untreated newborn jaundice leading to kernicterus
• Injuries to the mother, such as serious perineal tears, haemorrhage or retained placenta or tissue
• Stillbirth or the death of a baby or mother, where care may have contributed

Not every poor outcome is negligence. Some complications happen even with good care. Our job is to find out which applies.

How a birth injury claim works in England

1. Free initial call. We listen, explain the law and tell you honestly whether a claim looks possible.
2. Medical records. With your consent we request maternity, neonatal and GP records.
3. Independent experts. Independent medical experts, such as an obstetrician, midwife or neonatologist, report on whether the care fell below a reasonable standard (breach of duty) and whether that caused the injury (causation). Both must be shown.
4. Letter of claim. We set out the claim to the NHS trust or provider. NHS claims in England are handled by NHS Resolution on the trust’s behalf.
5. Negotiation or court. Most claims settle without a trial. Where a child is the claimant, any settlement must be approved by the court to protect their interests.
6. Future needs. In serious cases compensation can cover care, therapies, equipment, adapted housing and lost earnings. We don’t value claims until the expert evidence is in.

Making a complaint to the NHS is separate from a legal claim, and you can do both. A complaint should normally be made within 12 months, and it does not pause the time limits for a legal claim. See the NHS guidance on how to complain.

Time limits

Under the Limitation Act 1980, an adult usually has 3 years to start court proceedings. Time runs from the date of the injury, or from the date you first knew, or could reasonably have been expected to know, that the injury may have been caused by the care (sections 11 and 14). See also our guide to birth injury time limits.

• Children: the 3 years do not start until their 18th birthday, so a claim can usually be started until their 21st birthday (section 28).
• Lack of mental capacity: if a child’s injury means they will not have the capacity to manage a claim as an adult, for example because of a severe brain injury, time does not start to run at 18 while that continues.
• Mothers’ own injuries follow the adult 3-year rule.
• Stillbirth: the claim is the mother’s own, so the adult 3-year rule applies.
• Death of a baby born alive, or of a mother: generally 3 years from the date of death, or from the date the person bringing the claim first knew, or could reasonably have been expected to know, that the care may have caused it (sections 11 and 12).

Making a complaint or asking for medical records does not pause these time limits. Gathering records and expert evidence takes months, so please contact us early rather than near a deadline.

Funding: no win, no fee

We usually act on a conditional fee agreement (no win, no fee). If the claim doesn’t succeed you won’t pay our fees, provided you have kept to the agreement, for example by giving us accurate information. Expert fees and other costs are covered by insurance, so you won’t have to pay them if the claim fails.

If the claim succeeds, most of our costs are normally paid by the other side. We don’t charge a success fee on children’s claims. Whatever applies in your case is agreed in writing before you sign, and any deduction from a child’s compensation must be approved by the court.

Legal aid is still available for some claims where a child suffered a severe brain injury during pregnancy, birth or the first eight weeks of life. We do not hold a legal aid contract for this work. If your child’s claim may qualify, we will tell you at the start and explain your options, including using a firm that does offer legal aid, before you decide how to proceed. We will also check whether you already have legal expenses insurance.

Frequently asked questions

How long do I have to make a birth injury claim for my child?

In England the 3-year limitation period for a child does not start until their 18th birthday, so a claim can usually be started until their 21st birthday. If the child will not have the mental capacity to manage a claim as an adult, time does not start to run while that continues. Limitation Act 1980, section 28.

How long does a mother have to claim for her own birth injuries?

Usually 3 years from the date of the injury, or from the date she first knew, or could reasonably have been expected to know, that it may have been caused by the care she received.

Can I claim if I gave birth at Bradford Royal Infirmary?

Yes, if the care fell below a reasonable standard and that caused the injury. Claims against NHS trusts in England are handled by NHS Resolution. We assess each case on its own facts.

Do I have to come to your Bradford office?

No. You are welcome at Unit 3, Campus Road, Listerhills Science Park, Bradford BD7 1HR, but we can also deal with everything by phone, video and post. If it is hard for you to get to the office, we can arrange a home visit when needed.

How is a birth injury claim funded?

Usually on a no win, no fee basis. If the claim does not succeed you do not pay our fees, provided you have kept to the agreement, and expert fees and other costs are covered by insurance. We do not charge a success fee on children’s claims. Legal aid may be available for some children with a severe brain injury from birth. We do not offer legal aid, and will explain your options. Any deduction from compensation is explained in writing before you agree.

Will making a claim affect my family’s NHS care?

A legal claim should not affect the care you or your child receive. NHS complaints and legal claims are separate processes.

Related pages

• Medical negligence claims
• Birth injuries claims (England)
• Medical negligence solicitors in Bradford
• Misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis
• Fatal injury and wrongful death
• Birth injury time limits
• Contact us

Talk to our Bradford team

Call 01274 488877 (Bradford) or 0333 777 5001, or request a call back. We act for clients across England.