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Bryan Thomas of Civitas Law involved in Wales first virtual civil trial

Bryan Thomas, the specialist personal Injury barrister at Civitas Law, Cardiff, was involved in what is believed to be Wales' first video link personal injury trial last week (liability only). The trial commenced at the Swansea County Court before HH Judge Vosper QC on 8th June 2020 and proceeded to judgment on 11th June 2020.
Bryan Thomas, instructed by Nic Collins of Slater & Gordon, Cardiff, represented the claimant. The claimant, a police sergeant, retired due to the injuries sustained in the accident. He was riding his motorcycle along the A487 Aberystwyth to Aberaeron road on a summer's day in 2015. As he did so the defendant, an agricultural contractor, drove his tractor and hay-baler out of a field entrance directly onto the A487. The defendant had emerged with restricted vision and the claimant was unable to stop in time. The defendant denied liability blaming the claimant but the judge found him to be 90% to blame for the accident. 

Bryan Thomas, reflecting on the trial said "Nobody travelled to attend Court. Each person was able to access the hearing from home. The Court had its own hearing platform managed from the Court by the court clerk. Save for some minor technical issues on Day 1 the hearing proceeded almost seamlessly with cross -examination of the parties and the accident reconstruction experts proceeding in a similar manner as a normal hearing. Documents were available in a reactive e-format. Remote trials will now be used more to ensure that important trials such as this can still go ahead in these restricted times".
The claimant was delighted with the outcome - "the decision making around the focus and heart of the case was superb".