Who? Rankeshwar Batta, 35-year-old senior associate solicitor in the clinical negligence department at Birmingham firm Anthony Collins.



Why is he in the news? Achieved a five-figure award in an out-of-court settlement on behalf of Lucy Neal, an 89-year-old widow who suffered abuse at the hands of her private professional carers. Ms Neal lacked capacity owing to physical and cognitive disabilities arising from a brain haemorrhage that had occurred towards the end of 2002 and which left her needing substantial professional care on a daily basis. However, by April 2003, her son, Joseph Neal, had grown concerned that his mother always seemed frightened when the carers arrived, and decided to film them covertly. The CCTV footage showed that she was routinely handled roughly and, in one particularly disturbing incident, was even force-fed talcum powder.



A criminal prosecution against the carers failed, but Mr Batta represented Ms Neal in a civil claim against the agency that employed the carers. The case was settled last month. More than three years after the CCTV footage was first seen, Ms Neal still suffers flashbacks and nightmares.



Jason Burt, a partner in Everatt & Co, the Worcestershire firm that represented the agency, said it had no substantive statement to make on behalf of its client. 'Liability was quickly admitted and the negotiated settlement was approved by the court,' he added.



Background: Law degree at Leicester University, followed by Law Society finals at the University of Central England, then a training contract at Fawcett & Pattni in Walsall. Qualified in 1996, moving on to West Bromwich high street firm Baches before joining Anthony Collins in 2000.



Route to the case: 'The case was referred to us via a smaller, local firm that Mr Neal had first approached. The smaller firm had judged that justice would best be served by a specialist clinical negligence and personal injury firm such as our own.'



Thoughts on the case: 'The facts of the case are shocking and reveal a stark failure in the special relationship of trust which should exist between vulnerable individuals and their carers. The settlement, however, will help Ms Neal and her family achieve closure and will also help fund an improvement in her quality of life. Also on a positive note, the high profile that this case achieved may help protect and encourage other people in a similar situation.'



Dealing with the media: 'Mr Neal broke the story on 11 June through the health correspondent of the Birmingham Mail and there was a total frenzy of media phone calls to this office thereafter. That was good because it was important to raise public awareness of the possibility of abuse, and the press handled it with great sensitivity.'



Jonathan Rayner