Lois Aldred

Lois specialises in catastrophic and serious personal injury litigation. She acts for both claimants and defendants and is sought after for her ability to efficiently advise on complex claims involving difficult liability and causation issues.

Her experience covers all aspects of personal injury litigation including EL, PL, Motor, at all stages of proceedings along with inquests.

Lois has a depth of experience advising in claims involving confirmed and probable brain-injured claimants, spinal injury and amputation.

Lois advised and acted throughout for the successful claimant in Brown v Morgan Sindall Infrastructure Ltd [2025] EWHC 2204 (KB), the leading case setting parameters on the reliance on validity testing in expert evidence and a rare ‘post-Abbott’ application of a modified Ogden 8 disabled multiplier to future loss of earnings without quantified reduction in post-accident earnings.

Travel litigation is a central pillar of Lois’ work with a significant proportion of her work being in the field. She works for individuals, major tour operators, airlines and international insurers and is recognised for her skill and experience in the field.

Lois advises and acts in all types of claim involving accidents abroad or during travel.

Her considerable experience as a PI practitioner means that she is sought in claims involving very serious illness, mass illness outbreaks, legionnaires contamination and accidents that result in life-changing injuries.

More generally, Lois has experience in cases involving most aspects of travel litigation and is experienced in dealing with the jurisdictional and evidential issues arising in such cases.

Lois is regularly instructed in cases involving the consideration of the applicability of the Athens Convention. Recent interesting cases in the field include:

• Advising and successfully representing a claimant in amending a claim under CPR 17.4 brought after two but just within three years of his disembarkation from a cruise by relying on Section 32 Limitation Act 1980. The application required extensive consideration of the relevance of CPR 17.3 and 17.4 and whether the defendant’s response to a letter of claim was sufficiently misleading to amount to the deliberate concealment of a fact relevant to the claimant’s right of action pursuant to s32.
• Acting for a French insurer defending a serious injury claim brought by a professional cyclist arising in respect of an accident during a professional cycling tour in France.
• Advising on liability and quantum in relation to serious sexual assaults taking place on hotel premises in Turkey.

Lois has a particular interest in claims involving accidents in France and francophone countries, having studied French Law in Strasbourg. Lois can also bring useful insight to cultural issues involving claims with a Japanese element, having lived and worked in Japan prior to becoming a barrister.

Lois is recognised as an experienced and able industrial disease junior. She advises and acts in cases involving occupational respiratory conditions, dermatological conditions, industrial deafness, and upper limb disorders.

Lois is frequently instructed to advise and act for former service-personnel.

Lois is able to advise on the most complex cases that pose difficult limitation and causation issues involving multiple defendants.

Lois is regularly instructed in detailed assessment proceedings in the SCCO, and on appeal.

Lois’ technical specialism is well-suited to arguing difficult points of principle in both solicitor/client and inter partes assessments.

Recent interesting cases include:

• Furley Page LLP v KFL [2025] EWHC 1703 (SCCO): Retrospective consideration of a client’s capacity to enter into a retainer
• Carl Hammond v Herrington Carmichael [2026] EWHC 701 (SCCO): SCCO’s refusal to assess 27 bills rendered during financial remedy proceedings after determining they were ISBs, whether special circumstances arose and/or whether the Court should nonetheless exercise its discretion to assess.
• Guest Supplies International v Ince Gordon Dadds LLP [2022] EWHC 2562 (SCCO): Consideration of adequacy of costs estimates and informed consent in solicitor client assessment

Lois also advises on and acts in appeals relating to costs disputes in the High Court and Court of Appeal, and has been instructed to draft costs submissions for substantive proceedings in the Court of Appeal.

In ADR, Lois is effective in helping her clients favourably compromise costs disputes at an early stage. She is also jointly instructed by parties to provide binding determinations on discrete points of dispute in a bill.

Much of Lois’ costs work relates to costs disputes arising from commercial, personal injury and Court of Protection litigation.

Lois is also frequently instructed to advise on costs management and represent parties at Costs Management Conferences.

Lois is a regular contributor to the 12KBW Costs Litigation Blog and frequently lectures on costs law.

Cases involving suspected fraud form an important area of Lois’ practice. She is consistently approached at an early stage to assess the merits and advise on tactics in investigating and proving suspected fundamental dishonesty. While much of her work in the area is on the instructions of defendants, she receives claimant instructions in high-value cases where Lois’ ability to provide early advice on the evidence is sought.

Recent trials include:

• Advising and acting for a major tour operator in a trial solely on the issue of fundamental dishonesty in an early-discontinued group litigation and was successful in securing a finding of fundamental dishonesty in the claims with an enforceable costs order against the claimants pursuant to CPR 44.16(1).
• Avdyli v J’O Doherty Haulage Limited: Advising and representing the successful defendant at a trial on a preliminary issue of fundamental dishonesty, in an exaggerated high-value serious injury claim, resulting in dismissal of the claim and an enforceable costs order.
• Brown v Morgan Sindall Infrastructure Limited: Defeating a claim of fundamental dishonesty, by undermining psychiatric evidence and surveillance on which the plea relied.

Lois is experienced in advising on physical, emotional and sexual abuse claims, including claims arising out of employment, care and educational settings. Lois is also experienced in claims involving injuries or assaults sustained in the care of vulnerable adults and children. Lois acts for both claimants and defendants.

A significant aspect of Lois’ judicial role includes the determination of allegations of abuse and the evaluation of their impact on children and families. She has extensive experience in care proceedings and pre-proceedings including where children are made subject to DoLS orders.

LLB Law with French Law and French Language (First Class Honours)

BVC (Very Competent)

Diplôme d’études juridiques françaises, Université Robert Schuman, Strasbourg

Personal Injuries Bar Association

Oxford University Press prize for Best 1st year mark in Law French/Law German Degrees

Inner Temple Scholarship

Inner Temple Entrance Exhibition

Hubert Parry Benefactor’s Scholarship

Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Exhibition

Recorder (Midlands Circuit 2019)

Lois is very good with sensitive cases, very good in those difficult cross-examinations. She is very empathic. – Chambers & Partners, 2026

Lois’ advocacy is exceptional. Her preparation is extremely thorough. – Legal 500, 2026

She’s always very well prepared and gets quickly to the heart of the trials. – Chambers & Partners, 2025

Lois is a really good advocate. – Chambers & Partners, 2025

Lois is proactive and good in court. – Chambers & Partners, 2025

She is excellent at managing complicated fundamental dishonesty issues. – Legal 500, 2025