Can you civil claim against an establishment for stress?
Discussion
I'm struggling to see if any law relates to this or not. I don't want to go into too much detail so forgive me in advance.
I and my employer were investigated by a home office investigative body over an incident that happened during my employment (I still am employed).
The investigation was flawed. Evidence was lost, mishandled and the case took years rather than the weeks it should have taken. Taxpayer money was wasted and I spent a huge amount of time under a great deal of stress and anxiety, not knowing if i would face criminal charges.
After a lengthy investigation, the body recommended one of the highest levels of punishment/course of action against me. After resistance from my employer, who pointed out the flaws, evidential failings and threatened the investigators with taking the case to a judicial review, they suddently turned around and said there was no case to answer and I had done nothing wrong.
Is there grounds for civil claim against the investigative body, on any legal basis, due to their incompetance, abuse of process, mishandling etc which has caused me a great deal of stress and anxiety? If so, what kind of legal expert do I need to consult with?
I and my employer were investigated by a home office investigative body over an incident that happened during my employment (I still am employed).
The investigation was flawed. Evidence was lost, mishandled and the case took years rather than the weeks it should have taken. Taxpayer money was wasted and I spent a huge amount of time under a great deal of stress and anxiety, not knowing if i would face criminal charges.
After a lengthy investigation, the body recommended one of the highest levels of punishment/course of action against me. After resistance from my employer, who pointed out the flaws, evidential failings and threatened the investigators with taking the case to a judicial review, they suddently turned around and said there was no case to answer and I had done nothing wrong.
Is there grounds for civil claim against the investigative body, on any legal basis, due to their incompetance, abuse of process, mishandling etc which has caused me a great deal of stress and anxiety? If so, what kind of legal expert do I need to consult with?
You can talk to a lawyer... You will want a civil litigator who either specialises in public law or complaints against the police, depending on the nature of the claim.
The stress itself is unlikely to be actionable unless it amounts to a psychiatric injury. Be aware though that a claim in negligence will be difficult to establish as there may well be qualified immunity from negligence - but malfeasance in public office or malicious prosecution are both possibilities.
However, it will depend on the evidence and you should also be aware that, while you are extremely unlikely to be punished in any way as a result of reopening the original proceedings (which is NOT what you are seeking to do) you will undoubtedly be going over old ground and the threshold for a successful claim will almost certainly be higher than a lack of competence (which is all you need to show when you are injured as a result of being rear-ended, for instnace).
The stress itself is unlikely to be actionable unless it amounts to a psychiatric injury. Be aware though that a claim in negligence will be difficult to establish as there may well be qualified immunity from negligence - but malfeasance in public office or malicious prosecution are both possibilities.
However, it will depend on the evidence and you should also be aware that, while you are extremely unlikely to be punished in any way as a result of reopening the original proceedings (which is NOT what you are seeking to do) you will undoubtedly be going over old ground and the threshold for a successful claim will almost certainly be higher than a lack of competence (which is all you need to show when you are injured as a result of being rear-ended, for instnace).
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