Victoria Richardson

I worked alongside Neil Hudgell representing the family of former Welsh Cabinet Secretary Carl Sargeant, who was found dead days after being sacked.

Carl committed suicide in November 2017 after being sacked from his cabinet post as Secretary for Communities and Children. Allegations had been made against him, but he was never told what they were, and his impending removal from government was leaked to the media before he knew.

Hudgells were successful with a judicial review of the Welsh Government’s decision to exclude the family from participating effectively in the independent inquiry into how Mr Sargeant was sacked by the (now former) First Minister Carwyn Jones.

Vicky was also part of the team which represented the family at inquest, when the coroner recorded a conclusion of ‘suicide’ and said he believed there was ‘a real risk that future deaths will occur in the event of political sackings unless action is taken by the Welsh Government.

I again worked with Neil to represent the families of Anthony Walgate, Daniel Whitworth, Gabriel Kovari and Jack Taylor, who were murdered by serial killer Stephen Port. Following months of preparation and a lengthy inquest, multiple failings where exposed that had not been identified by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). The Jury found fundamental failings and basic errors by the Metropolitan police probably contributed to the deaths of the young men.

I also represented the victim of a historic sexual assault, who many years later discovered that the police had misplaced a disc containing the interview following the attack. Following an investigation by the IOPC, it also came to light that a forensic report had been misread by an officer. That same officer had then mocked my client in a series of emails, suggesting she was disingenuous. 

As a result of this, disciplinary action was taken against a number of officers involved, two of which resigned from their post.

I have also supported clients through our representation at Public Inquiries. This has included June Tron, mother of Philip, who was killed in the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017. I have also represented clients affected by the Post Office Horizon scandal at Public Inquiry, and with their claims for malicious prosecution, and to seek damages via the Horizon Historical Shortfall Scheme.

Other significant cases include successfully secured compensation for two minors who were the victims of sexual abuse at the hands of a relative, after the police force involved failed to investigate concerns that had been raised which could have resulted in the perpetrator being arrested several months sooner.

I also successfully secured compensation for an elderly lady who felt harassed as officers of a police force repeatedly attended at her home, looking for a relative who did not, nor had ever lived with her. On at least two occasions when officers attended her home, the relative was on remand in prison.

Another significant I led at Hudgell Solicitors involved investigations into how a London Metropolitan Police Force list of suspected gangs came to be shared over social media – leading to innocent people being left in fear of attack.