Lawyer who went ‘where angels feared to tread’ remembered
TRIBUTES have been paid to Neville Whittle, the lawyer who built up an international reputation as an expert disaster litigator, who has died aged 81.
Mr Whittle rose to prominence after recovering damages on behalf of around 70 British claimants in connection to the Turkish Airlines crash in Paris in 1974.
The crash killed 346 passengers and crew and subsequently a design flaw was discovered on the plane which contributed to the crash.
Mr Whittle, who was a partner at law firm Ford & Warren in Leeds at the time of the incident, was instructed to act on behalf of the family of Malcolm Sorrin, and his wife, who were killed in the crash.
Mr Whittle went on to recover damages on behalf of British claimants through the American courts where the hearings took place.
However, the levels of compensation in America were much less generous than in Britain and by the 1980s Mr Whittle had negotiated a “mid-Atlantic settlement” with aircraft insurers, which resulted in damages being awarded at a level between those available in the British and American courts, while avoiding the necessity of paying American lawyers contingency fees that typically ranged from 30% to 50% of the final damages.
The concept formed the basis of settlement of the claims arising from a crash at Manchester Airport in 1985 and many subsequent air disaster claims.
Mr Whittle was instructed in a number of other major disaster claims, including the Dan-Air disaster in Tenerife in 1980; the 1985 Bradford City fire; and the Zeebrugge ferry disaster in 1987.
Stephen Kirkbright, a partner at Ford & Warren for almost 40 years, who now works for the firm as a consultant, joined the practice two years after Mr Whittle in 1965.
Paying tribute to Mr Whittle, Mr Kirkbright described him as an “exceptional” lawyer and “free thinker” who built up an international reputation in his field.
“He wasn’t bound by convention,” Mr Kirkbright said. “He would often go where angels feared to tread. He did what he thought was right and was prepared to stand by the consequences.”
Blaise Smith, a senior partner and head of insurance at Ford & Warren, said: “Neville was a first class lawyer and an inspirational role model in my early years at Ford & Warren.
“His legacy survives in the very substantial litigation practice for which Ford & Warren has a national and international reputation.”
Mr Whittle was born in India but was educated in Yorkshire. By the time of his retirement from Ford & Warren in 1990 he had become a senior partner at the firm.
