Weightmans' Public Sector team is one of the largest in the UK, with extensive experience working with local authorities, local authority consortia, police forces, fire authorities and NHS Trusts.

Legal Support

Weightmans' Public Sector team provides a wrap-around support service covering every conceivable legal issue for our local government clients. Our lawyers have hands-on experience of working in local government and the public sector.  You can be assured that we understand the issues you face and the political and economic pressures you work under. Our approach is focused on solving your legal problems as quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively as possible.

We are LEXCEL accredited, and our commitment to electronic case management assures the quality of everything we do. Your work will be handled by people who know their subject thoroughly, and who are fully supported by a dedicated know-how team.

Defendant Litigation

We are brand leaders in defendant litigation services for local and public authorities, with in-depth expertise in all types of claims including motor, public liability and employers' liability.  We have considerable experience in handling sensitive and/or high profile claims, such as bullying, failure to educate and abuse, and are equally skilled in handling the media attention that these cases sometimes attract.

Whilst we encourage a commercial, cost effective and pragmatic approach to claims, we recognise the financial constraints and policy considerations that you have to consider, and tailor our service accordingly.

We advise on risk management strategies, both generally and in connection with specific claims. One of our partners has written the authoritative textbook “Local Authority Liability” and we are the legal advisers to the National Forum for Risk Management in the Public Sector (formerly ALARM).

We have also developed a special fraud detection package for public bodies. We regularly advise on policy matters and attend internal committee and risk management meetings to provide input in connection with wider issues affecting local authorities and service delivery.

We are on the panel of all of the major public sector insurers as well as receiving instructions directly from local authorities. We regularly provide training through our own seminars, including national conferences dedicated to police and fire authorities, as well as through local and national bodies and regional insurance officers’ groups.

One of our key differentiators as a legal practice is that we go beyond the routine at every opportunity. We seek to work in partnership with you and use our relationship as a springboard for improvement. In this regard, we provide access to our research facilities, help with professional training, arrange secondments and support with staff development, enabling your officers to innovate, develop and improve performance.