The latest addition to a Shropshire law firm’s clinical negligence team has some specialist expertise to tap into – as the assistant coroner to Birmingham and Solihull.

Adam Hodson lives in Telford and has joined Lanyon Bowdler’s clinical negligence team in Shrewsbury. He qualified as a solicitor in 2009 and was appointed assistant coroner three years ago.

Adam said he was looking forward to serving and helping the community and will be combining his new role at Lanyon Bowdler with his position as assistant coroner.

“I am delighted to have made the move to Lanyon Bowdler, a law firm with an excellent reputation and a clinical negligence team which is among the most highly regarded in the country,” he said.

“Being a clinical negligence lawyer and an assistant coroner go hand-in-hand because there are often a significant quantity of deaths that occur as a result of culpable human failings, which mean that inquests are necessary.

“Having a knowledge of medical terminology and procedures has also proved to be an invaluable asset.”

Adam studied law at Aberystwyth University before attending Chester Law School and then became a trainee solicitor in 2006. He qualified in 2009 and began specialising in clinical negligence a year later.

“I applied to be assistant coroner to Birmingham and Solihull and was appointed in 2018,” said Adam. “All coroner positions are advertised nationwide so there is a lot of competition and I was delighted to be chosen.

“Birmingham and Solihull is one of the largest jurisdictions and is ordinarily very busy, but the pandemic has unfortunately put a strain on the coroner service.

“Duties involve the investigation of deaths where there is reason to suspect a person died violently or unnaturally, where their cause of death is unknown, or where a person died whilst in state detention.

“The system is geared to ensure that the family of the deceased are at the heart of the process, with the sole purpose of a coroner being to answer four questions required by law – specifically: Who was the deceased? Where, when and how did they die?”

Beth Heath, a partner at Lanyon Bowdler and head of the clinical negligence team, said: “We are delighted to welcome Adam to the firm – he has a wealth of experience within clinical negligence and in his role as assistant coroner and will be a valuable addition to Lanyon Bowdler.”

Pictured: Adam Hodson and Beth Heath.