Role of Legal Advice and Commitment to Openness

The Board recognises that legal advice is an important part of ensuring compliance with the Trust’s legal duties. As a Board, we are committed to ensure legal compliance to support good governance and patient-centred decision-making, whilst upholding openness and accountability at all times. 

In all clinical areas, transparency and learning are critical and as such, the Board is committed to: 

• Do the right thing for patients, families, and staff whilst ensuring legal compliance.
• Not allow fear of litigation to prevent honest communication or timely disclosure.
• Meet its clinical, ethical, and organisational responsibilities lawfully and through honesty, clarity, and a willingness to explain the decisions we make and the challenges we face.
• Lead with integrity, ensuring that the voices of patients and staff remain at the heart of our decisions.
• Meet our responsibility to protect the Trust from unnecessary legal risk which would undermine the Trust’s ability to act in the best interests of all patients. There are occasions where we must take care in how information is shared, particularly where matters involve individuals, ongoing investigations, or potential litigation. Being cautious in these situations is not about withholding information; it is about ensuring that we do not compromise legal processes undermining the ability of the Trust to act in the patients’ best interest in the long term.

Our commitment is to improvements and openness, as a Board, we aim to be as transparent as possible while also fulfilling our legal duties. This allows us to maintain public confidence, support learning and improvement, and ensure that the Trust can continue to provide safe, high‑quality care for all those who rely on us.