The importance of being earnest about ethics in PI

Last year saw the publication of my book The Importance of Being Ethical, the title of which contains an allusion to the great Oscar Wilde play The Importance of Being Earnest, which satirises Victorian notions of respectability and duty. A classic Wilde play, to me its commentary seems as relevant today as it was when it was first performed in London over 100 years ago.

Having worked in the personal injury sector for many years and having borne witness to unethical conduct by, and unfair accusations levelled at, the sector, I was compelled to put pen to paper and look at the importance of being ethical in business - in all walks of life.

In recent years the injury claims sector has been rife not only with unfair practice, referral fees, and backhanders, but also with cynical, insurer-driven spin. In America the 'ambulance-chasing PI lawyer' is a staple of press vilification, and in the UK we have misconstrued ideas of a 'compensation culture' supposedly driven by meretricious claimants and money-grabbing lawyers. Shock headlines of injured claimants receiving large amounts of compensation make for great copy, and so the theme of claimant bashing is sadly a regular one. In reality a condition such as whiplash is deeply painful and debilitating, yet it has now been reduced to something considered an erroneous or spurious claim.

Claimant bashing

While claimant bashing may be the favoured tactic for many pointing the finger at the claims industry, in reality fingers should point at the insurance sector. It is perhaps here that ethical dissonance sounds loudest, reflected by the Office of Fair Trading's recent referral of the UK's private motor insurance industry to the Competition Commission. This followed a study in 2012, which found there were reasonable grounds to suspect that there are features of the insurance market that distort or restrict competition.

Common practices in the insurance industry have both encouraged and fostered the so-called 'compensation culture' - a term that, in itself, is unquestionably a direct and unethical attack on the integrity of those seeking just compensation, with little consideration for the people behind the claim.

But I am certainly not holding my own profession out as an exemplar par excellence. Some law firms, too, have been guilty of charges of sharp practice, either by inducing the making of claims where realistically there is none, or by settling cases for commercial benefit rather than in their client's best interest. Others string out case duration knowing that the longer they keep going, the more money will come in.

Fall from grace

It wasn't always this way: acting for insurers 20 years ago was technically exacting and challenging. Being a claimant solicitor was even more appealing when working in a world where the desire to seek legal address for injured people wasn't frowned upon. Indeed, if we take a look at the legal landscape in personal injury now, from what heights we appear to have fallen.

There are exaggerated claims and aggressive marketing. Ancillary businesses, from credit hire to costs companies, are seemingly everywhere, ranging from medico-legal agencies to rehabilitation specialists, and they're all usually more concerned about the bottom line than about the injured people whose ill fortune keeps them in business.

It doesn't have to remain so, however, and in part my hope is that my book encourages those working in the insurance industry to take a look at the covert encouragement of the 'compensation culture' spin, unprofessional conduct, and unethical customs.

Beyond PI

Beyond the personal injury sector, the book also muses on behaviours in four other worlds: sport, entertainment, big business, and politics, all of which are also ripe for ethical introspection.

In public life, for example, the Nolan Principles, which are intended to act as a guide for those in public office, and which place a premium on selflessness in the interest of the public good, all too often go AWOL. They explicitly call for integrity, objectivity, and openness - principles many industries could benefit from embracing.

The French writer Albert Camus once said, 'Integrity has no need of rules' - and he's right. My book isn't about calling for a barrage of extra red tape but a re-commitment to behaving ethically.

My hope is that it prompts, in some small way, a re-engagement with doing the right thing. It is a call to arms for those who believe in sound ethical principles, who uphold standards of professionalism, and who believe in professional rigour.

Just as Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest reveals that appearances are not to be relied upon, so too must we all look to shine a light on the hypocrisy which has come to permeate so many sectors of society.

John Spencer is a solicitor and chairman of personal injury practice Spencers Solicitors. His book The Importance of Being Ethical: Essays on Ethics - A Solicitors' Perspective is available from Amazon