Jason Squire, Ashfords


Who? Jason Squire, 37-year-old personal injury and litigation partner at the Taunton office of south-west and London law firm Ashfords.



Why is he in the news? He acts for the parents of Rhianna Hardie, the ten-month-old baby who died after being scalded by water when an outmoded thermostat malfunctioned in the hot water system, causing the cold water cistern to rupture after near-boiling water from the immersion tank had flowed back up into

the loft.


The tragedy occurred on the first night her family spent in a new council house in Taunton. Her parents were alerted by the infant’s screams and rushed into her bedroom to find the near-boiling water gushing through the ceiling to where she lay in her cot. She was treated for 95% burns, but died three weeks later from septicaemia.


The inquest jury found that the accident was entirely avoidable. A fatal accident involving the same type of thermostat and cold water cistern had occurred in very similar circumstances in Cornwall in 2002. No steps were taken to oblige landlords to ensure that the equipment complied with British safety standards. Instead, landlords continued to rely on tenants identifying when the thermostats had ceased functioning.



Background: Mr Squire attended Huddersfield University from 1991 to 1994, reading for a business law degree and then staying on for the legal practice course. He trained at Bevan Ashford in Taunton, joining the litigation department on qualification. The firm separated in 2004 and Ashfords was formed, and Mr Squire was made up to partner in 2005.



Thoughts on the case: ‘Following the inquest verdict, I am still advising my clients, so there is a limit to what I can say. But obviously, the circumstances were very tragic, and the case required careful and sensitive handling.



‘One awful aspect of the case was that the tragedy could have been avoided. In 2004, a new British Safety Standard was introduced, requiring all electrical thermostats of this sort to have a safety cut-out facility. Unfortunately, the standard was not retrospective because the cost of replacing all the obsolete devices was prohibitive.



‘The Health & Safety Executive and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister were both criticised at the inquest for not acting more decisively in this respect. Hopefully the law will now be tightened.’



Dealing with the media: ‘I found it a very positive experience. If I was open and straight with them, they responded in kind and were helpful. I had particularly regular contact with the local BBC and ITV news teams, and got to know and trust them.’



Jonathan Rayner