Colleen Cumbers joined Chambers in October 2024 following successful completion of her pupillage. She accepts instructions across all of Chambers’ core areas of practice, with a particular interest in insurance & reinsurance, property damage, construction, professional negligence, clinical negligence, and product liability.
Since starting on her feet, Colleen has appeared in court regularly. She is instructed on small claims and fast track trials as well as on applications, preliminary hearings, directions hearings, CCMCs, disposal hearings, and approval hearings, including in multi-track cases.
Colleen has had various successes in court, including appearing against more senior opposing counsel in a CCMC and reducing their costs budget by almost 50%, and successfully appearing in an application and directions hearing in the High Court against a ranked senior junior – both while still a pupil. Her attention to detail has been instrumental in securing favourable outcomes for her clients, including her uncovering a seemingly insignificant date of signature buried in a large volume of documents which she used to enable her to successfully argue for the dismissal of a claim in its entirety (despite liability having been admitted), and identifying a discreet CPR provision which enabled her to successfully raise jurisdictional points to resist an application for a witness to attend a trial remotely from another country.
In addition to her court work, Colleen is developing a strong drafting and advisory practice. She has been instructed to advise solicitors and clients and to draft pre-action correspondence and pleadings in a wide range of cases including those involving property damage, trespass/nuisance, professional negligence, clinical negligence, breaches of health and safety regulations, and breaches of the Equality Act 2010.
During her pupillage, Colleen had the opportunity to complete extensive amounts of written work on complex and high-value matters for her supervisors and other members of Chambers. While she was still a pupil, her skeleton argument was used in a DIAC arbitration involving sums of more than 50 million Qatari Riyal.
Prior to coming to the Bar, Colleen graduated from the University of Oxford with a First Class BA in French and German. She subsequently completed an MA Law (Conversion) at the University of Law for which she was awarded a Distinction, as well as the Dean’s Award for best overall performance in her cohort. She went on to complete an LLM Master of Laws with selected papers including International Trade Law and Medical Law. She was awarded a Distinction, with high Distinction marks achieved in all papers taken. In preparation for pupillage, Colleen completed the Bar Course at the Inns of Court College of Advocacy, and Qualifying Sessions at the Inner Temple. She was called to the Bar and commenced pupillage at Crown Office Chambers in October 2023.
Insurance & Reinsurance
During pupillage, Colleen benefited from the supervision of leading barristers in this field. She has experience in advising insurers as to matters such as the strength of declinature of cover as well as in drafting pleadings. Her work in this area includes:
- Obtaining strike out of a claim against an insurer for failure to provide cover under an insurance policy on the basis that the claim was brought against the wrong party.
- Advising an insurer on the prospects of declining cover in relation to a proposed claim arising out of contaminated batches of beer, specifically advising on questions of whether there had been damage to property and whether a financial loss extension applied (during pupillage).
- Advising an insurer on the prospects of declining cover on the basis that the alleged tortfeasor was a labour only sub-contractor as opposed to a bona-fide sub-contractor (during pupillage).
- Drafting a Defence to a High Court claim for a declaration that insurers were bound to indemnify the various claimants’ businesses in respect of interruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic (during pupillage).
Property Damage
Both during pupillage and in her own right, Colleen has advised and drafted pleadings in relation to a variety of property damage claims. She accepts instructions on behalf of both Claimants and Defendants. Work in this area includes:
- Securing judgement for the Claimant in a property damage case turning on interpretation of contract terms between the parties and the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
- Obtaining strike out in a property damage claim in which she represented a well-known energy company.
- Advising and subsequently drafting the Particulars of Claim in a property damage case involving evaluating evidence on pipework joint installations, and establishing negligent workmanship.
- Drafting the Defence on behalf of a heating company accused of property damage as well as breaches of the Equality Act 2010 in relation to their treatment of a disabled customer.
- Drafting a Particulars of Claim in a High Court case concerning the failure of a residential school to adequately supervise pupils so as to prevent them causing damage to a local grade II listed historic building (during pupillage).
- Drafting a Defence in a case concerning the alleged negligence of a company carrying out excavations which led to damage of underground electricity cables (during pupillage).
Construction
During pupillage, Colleen benefited from the supervision of leading barristers in this field as well as a training programme on construction law delivered by Anthony Lavers. Colleen’s work in this area includes:
- Drafting the Reply to Counterclaim on behalf of a firm of architects accused of breach of contract and professional negligence in relation to alleged failures to properly submit a planning application prior to the implementation of legislative changes which would increase costs for the client.
- Representing a builder at a preliminary hearing in a claim for the costs of remedying allegedly defective insurance repairs. Matters in issue included the need for expert evidence.
- Drafting a Reply in a High Court case involving the scope of work and the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (during pupillage).
- Drafting an application for security for costs in a High Court case involving allegations of breach of a construction contract (during pupillage).
- Preparing the skeleton for a DIAC arbitration concerning sums of over 50 million Qatari Riyal which involved construction companies existing under the laws of the UAE (during pupillage).
Professional Negligence
Both during pupillage and in her own right, Colleen has advised and drafted pleadings in relation to claims against various professionals including accountants, architects, construction professionals, insurance brokers, and solicitors. Colleen’s work includes:
- Drafting the Reply to Counterclaim on behalf of a firm of architects accused of breach of contract and professional negligence in relation to alleged failures to properly submit a planning application prior to the implementation of legislative changes which would increase costs for the client.
- Drafting the Reply and Defence to Counterclaim in a case in which she represented a solicitor accused of professional negligence in relation to divorce proceedings.
- Drafting a Defence to a High Court claim against the promoter of a tax mitigation scheme in relation to alleged failures to give adequate warnings as to the risks of the scheme being challenged by HMRC (during pupillage).
- Drafting a skeleton on behalf of the Claimant, an insurance company, for a CCMC in a High Court case concerning the failure of a broker to place a reinsurance policy, leading to losses of approximately €20 million (during pupillage).
Clinical Negligence
Colleen has a keen interest in clinical negligence. As part of her LLM Master of Laws, Colleen selected Medical Law as a specialist subject and also completed a dissertation on the Supreme Court case of Paul v Wolverhampton, achieving high Distinction grades in both. She was also awarded a Distinction in her legal research project on the Bolam test as part of her MA Law (Conversion). She attended the Clinical Negligence Conference 2024 as a delegate.
Colleen accepts instructions on behalf of Claimants and Defendants.
Colleen’s work in this area includes:
- Advising the family of a patient who died following a late diagnosis of malignant melanoma. Issues included whether it was possible to establish breach of duty and causation, as well as practical issues such as the need for further expert evidence.
- Advising an NHS Trust in relation to the value of a claim arising from the death of a patient following a missed diagnosis of aortic dissection, and drafting a Counter-Schedule of Loss to the claim which was pleaded at well over £1 million (during pupillage).
Personal Injury
Colleen is frequently instructed in MOJ stage 3 hearings, infant approval hearings, and trials in personal injury cases, especially those arising out of road traffic accidents. She also accepts instructions to advise and draft pleadings. Colleen’s work in this area includes:
- Successfully appearing in an application and directions hearing in the High Court in a multi-track personal injury case worth over £200,000.
- Representing the Defendant in a CCMC and succeeding in reducing the Claimant’s costs budget by almost 50%.
- Drafting the Defence and Counter-Schedule in a claim for alleged breaches of health and safety regulations at work which resulted in personal injuries.
Awards
- Winner, Aqeel H. Noorali Moot Cup (2021)
- Winner, Oxford Bar Society Non-Law Moot (2021)
- Winner, 2 Hare Court Mock Trial (2021)
- Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award, Inner Temple (2021)
- Major Scholarship, Inner Temple (2021)
- Exhibition Scholarship, Inner Temple (2020)
- Dean’s Award for Best Academic Performance, University of Law (2021)
- Various Collections Prizes, Oriel College, University of Oxford (2015-2020)
Blogs
News
Qualifications
- BA French and German (First Class), University of Oxford
- MA Law (Conversion) (Distinction), University of Law
- LLM Master of Laws (Distinction), University of Law
Memberships
- Personal Injuries Bar Association (PIBA)
- Professional Negligence Bar Association (PNBA)