Hospital leaders in Bath remain very sorry for the death of an actor’s baby after his High Court bid for £10million in lost earnings was rejected.
Photo courtesy of the RUH
Jamie King, who had appeared in Mad Men and The Tudors, claimed he missed out on the chance of a role in the Oscar-winning film Dunkirk when his five-day-old son Benjamin died.
The newborn is likely to have been deprived of oxygen after his mother, Canadian actor Tamara Podemski, had her C-section delayed by 12 hours despite being 14 days overdue, an inquest found in 2017.
The Royal United Hospital Trust later admitted liability for Benjamin’s death, accepting that if he had been delivered earlier he would have survived.
The trust said it made changes in maternity care as a direct result of the case.
Mr King’s lawyers had said he was on the “verge of a big break” before his son’s death and sought nearly £10million in lost earnings. The grounds he gave were psychiatric injury, based on a “single shocking event” of what he saw and was told on his first visit to see Benjamin in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Judge Philip Mott QC refused to award damages, finding the trust was not liable for his loss of earnings and that it was not a legally “shocking” event.
He found although the actor had a “significant chance” of success, this was “far from certain”.
In a statement after the ruling, RUH Trust medical director Dr Bernie Marden said: “First and foremost our thoughts are with the King family – this has been a distressing time for them and we wish them the very best for the future.
“In 2016 the trust carried out a thorough investigation into the events which led to the delay in delivery of Mr King’s son Benjamin. Changes in practice were integrated into maternity care as a direct result of this case, lessons have been learnt and the quality of maternity care provided to patients further improved.
“The trust accepted liability for causing Benjamin’s death in 2017 and has expressed its deepest apologies to the family.
“The trust defended this current case brought by Mr King on the grounds that it did not meet the required legal test for a claim for damages. The Court has agreed, however the Trust remains very sorry for the events which gave rise to the case.”
Stephen Sumner, Local Democracy Reporter
