Regulatory defence for doctors
Defence for doctors facing the GMC, the police, a coroner or their employer
A GMC investigation, a police interview, an inquest or a trust disciplinary process needs one team that sees the whole picture. Eloquia defends doctors on fixed fees, with the same team on every track, led by Saqib Khan, a former solicitor who has sat as a judge.
Where we help
Four tracks, one team
GMC investigations and MPTS hearings
From the first letter at triage through the Rule 7 response, interim orders, a tribunal hearing and an appeal.
GMC and MPTSCriminal allegations arising from practice
Police contact, interview under caution and the GMC case that runs alongside, handled as one strategy.
Criminal allegationsInquests, performers list and NHS disciplinary
Interested person status at an inquest, investigations under Maintaining High Professional Standards, exclusion and performers list action.
Inquests and NHSDentists, nurses, pharmacists and allied professionals
The same fixed fee approach before the GDC, the NMC, the GPhC and the HCPC.
Other professionsNo cover, or cover refused
Your insurer or defence organisation has declined to help, or you hold no cover for the matter you face. We act on fixed fees from the first letter.
Cover refused or limitedIf a letter or a call has arrived today, start with what to do when a GMC letter arrives or what to do when the police ask to interview you. We also act for employers and NHS trusts as independent investigators and chairs. And we offer mediation for workplace and professional disputes.
Why one team
One incident can open four cases at once
A single clinical event can lead to a GMC concern, a police investigation, an inquest and a disciplinary process at your trust. Each has its own timetable, and each asks you for an account. What you say in one setting is read in the others. A statement written in a hurry for your employer can reach the GMC. An answer given to a police officer can be put to you at a tribunal.
We run every track as part of one strategy. The same team reads every document, keeps your accounts consistent and decides the order in which things happen. That way nothing said in one forum harms you in another.
What you say in one setting is read in the others.
The scale of the work is plain from the GMC's own figures. Its 2025 fitness to practise report records 13,465 concerns triaged in 2025, 997 formal investigations and 184 referrals to a tribunal. The MDU has said that defending a GMC case can cost more than £50,000.
13,465
concerns about doctors triaged by the GMC in 2025
997
formal GMC investigations opened from them
184
referrals to a medical practitioners tribunal
£50,000+
what the MDU says defending a GMC case can cost
Figures from the GMC fitness to practise report for 2025 and from the MDU.
Gaps in cover
Cover refused, or no cover at all?
Many doctors find out what their cover excludes on the day a GMC or police letter arrives. If your insurer or defence organisation has said no, or you hold no cover for the matter you face, we act for you on fixed fees from the first letter and tell you plainly whether the refusal is worth challenging.
- Defence organisation assistance is discretionary and can be declined or limited.
- NHS indemnity covers clinical negligence claims, not GMC or criminal matters.
- Some insured policies exclude criminal proceedings or complaints by your own employees.
Fixed fees
You know the cost of each stage before it starts
Every stage of your case has a fixed fee, which we agree in writing before the work begins. We quote every fee plus VAT. Each fee includes a specialist barrister, whom we involve from the outset to give you additional support and advice. Fees do not include additional expenses such as expert fees, which we quote separately. You pay stage by stage, so you never pay in advance for a hearing that may not happen. We do not act on conditional fee agreements.
Response to a GMC concern at triage
£2,500 plus VAT
GMC investigation to Rule 7, £9,500 plus VAT.
Every fee is stated plus VAT and includes a specialist barrister, whom we involve from the outset to give you additional support and advice. Fees do not include additional expenses such as expert fees, which we quote separately.
Who you will be working with
Led by a former judge
Saqib Khan leads every matter. He is a former solicitor who qualified 19 years ago. He founded his own law firm and ran it for 14 years. For more than four years he also sat as a fee paid judge of the County Court.
Having decided cases himself, Saqib knows what a decision maker needs to see and where an account loses credibility. He also knows how a tribunal weighs evidence of insight and remediation. That knowledge shapes your case from the first response to the GMC.
Eloquia's registered office is in Sale, Greater Manchester, a short journey from the MPTS hearing centre at St James's Buildings on Oxford Street in Manchester.
Insights
Latest articles
Cover and fees
Locums and private practitioners: who covers you?
Locum indemnity depends on where you work and who engages you. No state scheme pays for your defence before the GMC.
Cover and fees
Choosing a barrister for your hearing
What to look for in a barrister for your MPTS hearing, and the checks to make before you instruct anyone.
The GMC process
Health cases: when the concern is your own health
How a GMC health case works, from the health assessment to undertakings, and what stays confidential.
Arrange a confidential conversation
Call 07356 071 193 or email hello@eloquia.co.uk. Your first conversation may be with our AI assistant, which tells you at the start that it is an AI assistant, not a person or a lawyer, and gives no legal advice. It takes your details and a short questionnaire for Saqib Khan, and where we can help we arrange an appointment with him at a time that suits you both. Our privacy notice explains how what you tell us is handled.