Thinking Skills: Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

134 Unit 4 Applied critical thinking

claims. But even if that widespread belief

(shown by Chart 2) is unfounded, it is not

because the data in Chart 3 contradicts it.

It is perfectly rational for people to hold the

two views: (1) that there are more cheats than

there were; but (2) that they wouldn’t cheat

themselves. These do not conflict; so nor do

the two sets of data.

Before answering the next question, there

is a further short document to read:

We simply cannot say. We also have to wonder

whether those questioned in the Chart 3

survey would all have answered truthfully.

There is no contradiction here. If 13% of all

adults are willing to admit to being tempted to

exaggerate a claim, that could result in a

considerable and increasing number of actual

claims. It could certainly be a sufficient

number to explain why many believe that

there was a significant increase in dishonest

How did no-win no-fee change things?

Ten years after the introduction of no-win no-fee agreements the UK Compensation

Recovery Unit reported that the number of cases registered to the unit had remained

relatively stable. In 2000/1 there were 735,931. The number in 2007/8 was 732,750.

For example, clinical negligence cases notified to the unit fell from 10,890 in

2000/1 to 8872 in 2007/8. Accidents at work cases fell from 97,675 in 2000/1 to

68,497 in 2007/8. Only motor accident claims have risen rapidly, rocketing from

403,892 cases in 2004/5 to 551,899 cases in 2007/8.

In its 2006 report on the ‘compensation culture’, the House of Commons Constitutional

Affairs Committee heard evidence that personal injury claims had gone up from about

250,000 in the early 1970s to the current level, but that the introduction of no-win no-fee

had coincided with this levelling off.

Lawyers dispute the claim that no-win no-fee inevitably leads to more frivolous

claims and more cases generally. They say the solicitor acts as a filter, knowing that

every case that doesn’t make it to court or a settlement is a financial loss to the firm.

BBC News Magazine

DOC 4