Independent expert reports, assessment clinics, and the robust governance and administration that surround them. Expert led, across the niche and the complex.
Make an enquiryThe expert's duty is to the court, and it overrides any obligation to the person instructing or paying.
CPR 35.3Instructed by claimant and defendant alike. We decline where a conflict exists, and say why.
Every report is written and signed by the expert who formed the opinion. No ghostwriting, no delegation to a medical writer.
Clinic programmes and records handling built around group litigation, with the single complex instruction given the same attention. Neither is a compromise for the other.
Reports compliant with CPR Part 35 and Practice Direction 35, written to answer the question actually asked, whether that is breach of duty, causation, or condition and prognosis. Preliminary and screening opinions where you need to know quickly whether a claim is worth running.
Face to face examination with the report written from it. Where a group of claimants shares a common index event, or one alleged mechanism, the work becomes repeatable and schedulable, so we run it as a clinic programme rather than a queue of separate instructions.
The critical but laborious work that surrounds an instruction, done by a team that already handles service personnel medical records under Ministry of Defence contract. Records retrieval and sorting, bundle preparation and pre-screening, booking and chasing, formatting to your house requirements, and invoicing. Available on its own, without an accompanying instruction for a report.
Scope. We give breach of duty opinions only where the care in question falls inside the expert's own field and current practice, and we say so at the outset where it does not. We work in England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland run under different rules and we will say so rather than take the instruction. We do not undertake MedCo soft tissue reporting. Where a case falls outside what we can properly opine on, we will tell you at the letter of instruction stage, not after the records arrive.
Assessing a service or veteran claim takes more than a clinician who has read a service medical record. It takes someone who knows how that record was made, what a medical board was deciding, and what the injury pattern of service life actually looks like.
That knowledge sits on the panel first hand. Collectively our experts have served through the British operations of the last three decades: the first Gulf War, Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Belize, Cyprus, Oman, Iraq and Afghanistan. That service runs to the environments Defence trains and operates in at the extremes: the High Arctic, high altitude, jungle, desert and maritime, alongside multiple Antarctic seasons.
The same people have deployed on humanitarian operations across the three categories that recur in claims. Natural disasters, including Typhoon Haiyan and the Kathmandu earthquakes. High consequence infectious disease, including the Sierra Leone Ebola response and a hantavirus evacuation in the South Atlantic. Armed conflict, from Angola through Libya, Syria and Lebanon to Ukraine and Gaza.
Their Defence and veteran work continues today. It includes recruit medical examination, Sessional Medical Advisor casework and medical appeals for the Army; a regional clinical lead role in the NHS veterans’ physical health and wellbeing service; and direct experience of how Defence sets, teaches and audits its own clinical standards, which is the yardstick a military breach of duty opinion is measured against.
Service medical records, the medical board process and the route of appeal, read by people who have worked inside them rather than met them for the first time in a bundle.
Recruit selection, downgrading, discharge and medical appeal, including where the claim is that a decision was wrongly made or wrongly recorded.
Blast and ballistic injury, non-freezing cold injury, musculoskeletal loading, and exposure to heat, cold and altitude, assessed by clinicians who treat them in current practice.
What we declare. Some of our people hold current or former connections with Defence, and ASG Rescue holds commercial contracts with the Ministry of Defence. Every one of those is declared in writing to both sides at the point of instruction, before papers are accepted, and we decline the instruction where it bears on the opinion. A connection disclosed at the outset is a matter of record. One that surfaces later is a problem for whoever instructed us.
MSc
Practice DirectorAlun is the first point of contact for an instructing firm. Whether we can take a case, what it will cost, when you will have the report, and the conflict check run before any papers are accepted all come through him.
He is not a clinician and gives no clinical opinion. His background is thirty years of operational leadership across military and commercial security, including investigations and due diligence instructed by law firms, and an MSc in Security, Conflict and International Development.
MBChB MSc DTM&H PGCert MAcadMEd FRCA FIMC (RCSEd.) FFRRHHEd
GMC 7074100 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
Prehospital, retrieval and transfer medicine, anaesthesia and traumaConsultant Anaesthetist at East Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, and Consultant in Prehospital Emergency Medicine with the North West Air Ambulance. Holds GMC subspecialty accreditation in prehospital emergency medicine.
Fellow of the Faculty of Remote, Rural and Humanitarian Healthcare, and Deputy Chair of the Clinical Standards Committee at the Faculty of Pre-Hospital Care, both at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Humanitarian deployments with UK-Med spanning high consequence infectious disease and active conflict, including field hospital work, for which he was awarded the Humanitarian Medal.
MBBS MSc MRCGP DCMM DMM FAWM FEWM
GMC 4042626 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
General practice, environmental extremes, toxicology and traumaGeneral practitioner, with a career-long theme of expedition, humanitarian and austere medicine delivered globally across high risk, hostile and inhospitable domains.
Senior clinical and advisory roles with the International Committee of the Red Cross, including board and strategic committee involvement, the HALO Trust and Medics4Ukraine. Course design and quality assurance in CBRN for UK Defence, the World Health Organization and the ICRC. Appointed MBE for training the White Helmets. Sits on the UK working group on frostbite and non-freezing cold injury.
MB ChB FRCR
GMC 7074174 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
Neuroradiology, brain and spinal imaging, causation from imagingConsultant Neuroradiologist at Royal Preston Hospital since 2019, on the GMC Specialist Register in clinical radiology since 2018. Trained in diagnostic neuroradiology at Salford Royal and Royal Preston, following the FRCR in 2016.
Leads the neuro-oncology and complex spinal imaging multidisciplinary teams, and sits on the stroke, pituitary, skull base, head and neck, neurovascular and epilepsy MDTs. Performs spinal intervention including biopsy and nerve root block under fluoroscopic and CT guidance, and is building that service at his trust. Academy Lead for the North West Deanery school of radiology, and its neuroradiology lead, teaching consultants, registrars and undergraduates weekly.
Reports on the imaging itself and on its interpretation by others: whether a finding is there, whether it was reported to standard, and above all whether the trauma caused it or it was already present.
MB ChB FRCSEd FRCS (Tr & Orth) FFRRHH
GMC 3249037 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
Trauma and orthopaedic surgery, spinal surgeryConsultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness from 2002, specialising in trauma and spinal surgery, and clinically active since retiring from full-time NHS practice in 2024. On the GMC Specialist Register since 2000 and a trainer recognised by the General Medical Council. Fellowship trained in orthopaedic trauma at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, and in spinal deformity in Edinburgh.
Lieutenant Colonel, Royal Army Medical Corps, retired. Commissioned while at medical school in Edinburgh, with operational service in the first Gulf War, Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Belize, Cyprus, Oman and Iraq. Surgical Lead for UK-Med, trauma expert to the World Health Organization's regional trauma advisory team, and a member of the HALO Trust medical board. Deployments include Mosul, the Beirut port explosion, Eswatini, three missions to Ukraine and Al Aqsa Hospital in Gaza. Vice-chair of the Faculty of Remote, Rural and Humanitarian Healthcare at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, and holder of the Tuanku Muhriz Fellowship in Rural Surgery. Appointed OBE in the 2023 New Year Honours for services to UK health support overseas, particularly in Ukraine, and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
MBChB MPharm (Hons) FRCS
GMC 7074113 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
Vascular and endovascular surgery, veteran healthConsultant Vascular and Endovascular Surgeon at Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, and Medical Director of AVA Clinics, Manchester. On the GMC Specialist Register in vascular surgery since 2022. NIHR Principal Investigator for clinical trials. Greater Manchester Lead for Op RESTORE, the NHS veterans’ physical health and wellbeing service.
Reports 60 to 80 instructions a year, including high value negligence claims, split roughly three to one between claimant and defence. Instructed on liability screening and triage, breach of duty and causation, and condition and prognosis. Has prepared joint statements under CPR Part 35.12 and given oral evidence under oath. Holds Bond Solon civil procedure and report writing certificates. Previously Consultant Vascular and Endovascular Surgeon at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, and Chief Registrar for Surgery at Manchester Foundation Trust.
MB BCh BAO MRCGP DRCOG DCCH DMH DFFP
GMC 3305416 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
General practice, medical education, military medicine and clinical governanceGP Partner with extensive experience across primary care, medical education, clinical governance, safeguarding and military medicine. On the GMC General Practitioner Register since 2006 and a trainer recognised by the General Medical Council, serving as GP Trainer and Educational Supervisor, Child Protection Lead and Prescribing Lead.
Substantial military medicine experience as a Civilian Medical Practitioner and Army Recruit Medical Examiner, with particular expertise in medical appeals, and currently Sessional Medical Advisor to the Army Personnel Centre.
A strong understanding of the professional, ethical, legal and regulatory aspects of clinical practice, developed through diverse clinical, educational, governance and military roles. Experienced in analysing complex information, assessing risk and weighing competing considerations to reach and communicate clear, reasoned and impartial conclusions.
BDS MDS FDSRCS FFRRHH
GDC 79255
Dentistry, oral surgery, dental and facial traumaDental surgeon in NHS general practice in Leeds since 2013, with a special interest in oral surgery, registered with the General Dental Council. Master of Dental Surgery in oral and maxillofacial surgery, and a Fellow in Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England since 1997.
Honorary Clinical Professor in Extreme Medicine at the University of Exeter Medical School and module lead for Wilderness Expedition Dentistry, and Clinical Lecturer at the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV. Founder of Wilderness Expedition Dentistry and Director of Dentistry at the Team5 Medical Foundation. Faculty for World Extreme Medicine and for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, and author of the dental chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Expedition and Wilderness Medicine. Dental surgeon to the British Antarctic Survey across three Antarctic seasons, and lead tutor on facial trauma training for doctors, surgeons and combat medics in a conflict setting.
Clinical expertise in emergency dentistry, dentoalveolar and maxillofacial trauma, dental and facial pain, jaw injuries, soft tissue wounds, and the assessment and management of treatment related complications, across primary care, hospital oral surgery, humanitarian practice and remote and austere medicine.
MA MBChB DipMtnMed
GMC Registered (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
Polar, mountain and expedition medicine, cold injuryGeneral Practitioner by background, on the GMC General Practitioner Register since 2006, with a career in the medicine of cold and remote environments. Medical Director of Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions from 2003 to 2025, responsible for medical cover of deep field Antarctic operations.
Emergency medicine in the French Pyrenees at the Centre Hospitalier du Val d'Ariege and as a doctor to the PGHM mountain rescue service. Faculty for the UK Diploma in Mountain Medicine, Honorary Lecturer on the University of Exeter MSc in Extreme Medicine, and editor of the polar medicine section of Auerbach's Wilderness Medicine. Read jurisprudence at Trinity College, Oxford and qualified as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court before medicine, and served in HM Diplomatic Service.
MB ChB BSc (Hons) FRCP Edin DCH FCEM
GMC 4443928 (opens the GMC register in a new tab)
Emergency medicine, adult and paediatricConsultant in Adult and Paediatric Emergency Medicine, NHS Fife. On the GMC Specialist Register in emergency medicine, with the paediatric emergency medicine sub specialty, since 2010.
Senior Advisor in Emergencies (Medical) at the Norwegian Red Cross, and previously the headquarters specialist in adult and paediatric emergency medicine for the International Committee of the Red Cross, acting as its global technical referent for emergency care. Member of the World Health Organization technical working group that produced the guidance on mass casualty burns. Deployments spanning armed conflict, high consequence infectious disease and natural disaster response.
| Hand selected | Experts are recruited and onboarded, not listed. Vetting and reference checks before joining. |
|---|---|
| Bond Solon trained | Formal expert witness training, funded by the practice as a commitment to professional standards and to the quality of the panel. |
| Corporate indemnity | Professional indemnity extending to medico-legal expert work, carried by the practice. |
| Demonstrable scope | A stated scope of expertise, with instructions outside it declined. Full CVs and court experience come with the terms of business. |
| Conflicts checked | Checked at instruction, before the papers are accepted. We take claimant and defence instructions, so it is run as a step and recorded. |
Meridian Medicolegal is a trading name of ASG Rescue Ltd.
Operated under ASG Rescue's ISO 9001:2015 certified quality management system, with document control, a risk register and tracked turnaround against deadline.
Run as a step before papers are accepted, not left to memory. We take claimant and defence instructions, so it is checked every time and recorded.
Retrieval, sorting, bundle preparation and pre-screening, run under documented compliance and governance. Cyber Essentials Plus, and registered with the Information Commissioner's Office with a named Data Controller.
Meridian runs as its own practice. The expert's duty to the court is unaffected by anything else the company does, and instructions are declined where that could be questioned.
You will get a prompt, direct answer on whether we can accept the instruction, what it will cost and when you will have it. If we are not the right experts for the matter at hand we will say so then, not after the records arrive.