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    • Medical Negligence
    • Women’s Health
          • Women’s Health

            We know that there is disparity in women’s health care, treatment, and support. We are committed to improving the lives of women and strongly advocating for their wellbeing.  That is why we take a stand and hold medical professionals accountable when medical care falls short of expected standards by delivering the best outcome in medical negligence claims affecting women.

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    • Hospital Negligence
          • Hospital Negligence

            We understand you may feel let down because you have experienced inadequate or negligent care and treatment in a hospital or medical facility. Your wellbeing is most important to us and we are committed to supporting you with compassion and holding medical professionals accountable for breach of duty and negligent care.

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    • Clinical Support
          • Clinical Support

            Experiencing poor or adverse outcomes from allied health treatment can be distressing and life changing. We are here to support you through your claim and it is our aim to hold allied health professionals accountable for their breach of care by delivering the outcome you deserve to your negligence claims.

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    • I need help
          • Not Sure where to start?

            Hello, I’m Jade. I’m here to help you with a quick call that will help us better understand your legal concerns. This way, I can connect you with the lawyer who is best suited to assist you with your situation.

            Your well-being is important to us, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.

            Call me on 02 4050 0330 or email [email protected]

    • Personal Injury
          • Personal Injury

            If you have been injured because of someone else’s negligence, our specialist team of Personal Injury Lawyers is here to support you with compassion and understanding providing you with the right advice. Our team has substantial experience and expertise in these matters to deliver the outcomes you deserve from your claim.

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    • Work Injury
    • Motor Vehicle Accidents
          • Motor Vehicle Accidents

            We are here to support you and give you the clarity, guidance and the right legal advice if you have been injured in a motor vehicle accident. Our compassionate team of professionals in Personal Injury law have the technical expertise and a wealth of experience to win you the compensation you deserve.

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    • Public Liability
          • Public Liability

            Our specialist team in Personal Injury law is here to support you in accessing proper compensation if you have been injured because of someone else’s negligence. We have cutting edge expertise and experience in public liability claims to deliver the outcome you deserve.

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    • Abuse
          • Institutional Abuse

            We strongly believe that educational institutions must be held accountable when failing to protect children while in their care. If you have experienced institutional physical or sexual abuse, our specialist team in Personal Injury law is here to support you with compassion and offer our technical expertise and experience to deliver the best outcome in your case.

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    • Workers Compensation
          • Workers Compensation

            When you sustain an injury or illness because of work, you may be entitled to  compensation. Our specialist team in Personal Injury Law is here to support you with compassion and understanding with the right advice. We have substantial technical expertise to deliver the best possible outcome from your claim.

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    • School Negligence
    • I Need Help
          • Not Sure where to start?

            Hello, I’m Jade. I’m here to help you with a quick call that will help us better understand your legal concerns. This way, I can connect you with the lawyer who is best suited to assist you with your situation.

            Your well-being is important to us, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.

            Call me on 02 4050 0330 or email [email protected]

    • Wills & Estate Planning
          • Wills and Estates

            When we provide advice on estate planning, we believe  in giving advice on options to mitigate the risks of litigation by potentially unhappy family members and protecting your assets from claims. Our legal team is here to support you and address your concerns regarding your estate planning. We have immense experience in these matters, providing you with advice and representation for your unique situation and delivering the best outcomes for your case.

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    • Powers of Attorney
    • Contest A Will
          • Contest A Will

            We have immense experience and specialised knowledge in family provision and wills disputes Where you have not been properly and adequately provided for under a will or where you suspect that the person making the will may not have had capacity or exercised their own free will, you need a lawyer with extensive experience and expertise. Our team of Lawyers will  provide you with advice and representation for your unique situation and deliver the best outcomes for your case.

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    • Probate & Deceased Estates
    • Enduring Guardian
    • Family Provision
    • I Need Help
          • Not Sure where to start?

            Hello, I’m Jade. I’m here to help you with a quick call that will help us better understand your legal concerns. This way, I can connect you with the lawyer who is best suited to assist you with your situation.

            Your well-being is important to us, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.

            Call me on 02 4050 0330 or email [email protected]

    • Other Services Overview
          • Conrad Curry Can assist you with a variety of services

            Our solicitors are highly experienced in providing you with expert legal advice and will keep you informed every step of the way. It’s good to know that our firm is trusted and effective with a high success rate.

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    • Professional Negligence
          • Professional Negligence

            We rely on professionals in all aspects of our lives to provide us with proper advice on which to make decisions about our financial and legal affairs. When you are let down by poor advice the results can be devastating.  We are here to support you in your claim for compensation with clarity, guidance and the right advice to achieve the outcome you deserve.

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    • Malicious Prosecution
          • Malicious Prosecution

            We believe in standing up for those people who are falsely accused and prosecuted. Our experienced legal team is here to support you with compassion and provide you with clarity, guidance, and the right advice in your claim for compensation.

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    • General Litigation
    • I Need Help
          • Not Sure where to start?

            Hello, I’m Jade. I’m here to help you with a quick call that will help us better understand your legal concerns. This way, I can connect you with the lawyer who is best suited to assist you with your situation.

            Your well-being is important to us, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.

            Call me on 02 4050 0330 or email [email protected]

    • What to Expect
          • What to expect

            We are your law firm for life. You can count on us for the best legal advice and compassionate support. We understand the challenges you are facing and we want you to know that you don’t have to navigate the often daunting process alone. We are here when you need us. Let us help you find your way forward with our empathetic and efficient approach. Contact us. You can call us on (02) 4050 0330 for a free initial no-obligation consultation or book an appointment online for an in-person consultation or an online video appointment.

  • No Win/No Fee Options

Access to my hospital or doctor’s medical records

Accessing Personal Medical Records

In New South Wales the general position is that a health practitioner or organisation is said to own the medical records they create. However, in most cases a person is still able to access their personal records. This is because the law views ownerships rights and access rights separately. Access can involve providing the person with: (1) a copy of the records, or (2) a reasonable opportunity to inspect and take notes from the records.

The right to request and receive access to medical records held by public providers (i.e. public hospitals) is outlined within the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (NSW). For private providers (i.e. private practitioners), this right manifests in the Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW) and the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). Moreover, the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW) was recently enacted and applies to both public and private sector organisations. Under schedule 1 of this Act, Health Privacy Principle 7 states “an organisation must, at the request of the individual to whom the information relates and without excessive delay or expense, provide the individual with access to the information.”

There are however limited grounds on which access may be refused. For example, access may not be granted if provision of records poses a serious threat to the life or health of the person requesting the records, or providing access is said to unreasonably impact on the privacy of other individuals. In circumstances where access is denied, the patient is to be notified of the reason/s for such a denial.

Accessing Medical Records of Loved Ones After Death

There is no specific legislation in NSW governing access to medical records involving a deceased patient. Unless there is an obvious probate dispute, or the deceased person clearly wished otherwise, access should be given to the personal legal representative of the deceased person (an appointed executor or administrator of their estate).

It is good practice to make such a request in writing and include relevant documentation (such as a certified copy of the deceased’s death certificate and will).

The difficulty arises where the deceased person’s estate is not the subject of a grant of probate or letters of administration. Whilst the NSW Trustee and Guardian assumes the role for all deceased persons (as the deceased estate vests in the NSW Trustee at first instance) until a personal legal representative is appointed, the practical reality is that the office is reluctant to become involved in such matters, leaving the family of the deceased person in a very difficult situation where the documents become necessary in a medical negligence dispute.

Access to Clinical Governance Documents

Clinical Governance is employed throughout New South Wales with the goal of ensuring practitioners, management and board members are held accountable for the role they play in delivering health services. Australian’s place a high degree of faith in practitioners and health service organisations to deliver safe and quality care. Unfortunately, sometimes there is a failure to provide this level of treatment and preventable adverse outcomes result.

The Clinical Governance Framework compels open disclosure about such failures. As a result, incidents are to be reported and acknowledged without fear of inappropriate blame. This allows people to learn from personal mistakes or those made by others. Staff are required to participate in investigations and ultimately implement any endorsed recommendations.

A Root Cause Analysis (“RCA”) is compulsory for all incidences carrying a severity assessment code of 1. An RCA may be undertaken for less severe incidences, but generally this only occurs where there is a belief that the incident was a result of a serious systemic problem. A Detailed Investigation Report is completed for all other incidences allocated a severity assessment code.

The purpose of an RCA is to create an understanding of how and why the incident manifested. Further, the process identifies way to improve system failures, with the aim of preventing similar incidences in the future.

The NSW Government Incident Management Policy states that information regarding severity assessment code 1 and 2 incidents should be offered to patients, and/or support persons, and/or family. Although the investigation stage of the RCA is privileged, the final report is able to be disseminated to the patient and the above-mentioned persons. It cannot however be used as evidence in any legal proceedings where a claim arises in relation to careless or inadequate treatment. This is different to documents in existence prior to the RCA being conduct, which can be relied on as evidence in legal proceedings.

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