Colleen Cumbers

Clinical Negligence

Colleen has a broad clinical negligence practice, acting for both claimants and defendants across a wide spectrum of matters, including complex claims involving fatalities.

Colleen’s current and recent instructions in this area include:

For Claimants

• Acting for the family of a patient who died following a late diagnosis of malignant melanoma.
• Acting for a patient who suffered maternal collapse and cardiac arrest as a result of negligent management of a retained placenta during childbirth.
• Acting for the family of an elderly patient who suffered multiple fractures while in the care of an ambulance service, causing avoidable pain and suffering in the final weeks of
her life.
• Acting for a patient in a proposed claim against an NHS dentist and NHS Trust arising from a negligent dental assessment and refusal to provide alternative treatment.

For Defendants

• Acting for an NHS Trust in a substantial quantum dispute following the death of a patient due to a missed diagnosis of aortic dissection. With liability admitted, the claim
was pleaded in excess of £1 million (during pupillage).
• Acting for a private healthcare provider in a claim concerning alleged delayed diagnosis of a hamstring rupture and missed opportunity for surgical intervention, said to have
resulted in permanent functional impact.
• Acting for a private nurse practitioner specialising in non-surgical facial aesthetic treatments in a claim alleging the use of inappropriate dermal filler, resulting in facial
asymmetry which required corrective grafting.
• Appearing against a KC in an infant approval hearing in which the wording of an order for a six-figure interim payment was disputed.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Colleen completed an LLM, concentrating principally on medical law. She was awarded a Distinction grade in all papers.

Selected Cases

Awards

• Inns of Court Pegasus Scholarship
• Inner Temple Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award
• Inner Temple Major Scholarship
• Inner Temple Exhibition Scholarship
• Dean’s Award for Best Academic Performance in MA Law (Conversion)
• Various Finals Collections Prizes from Oriel College, University of Oxford
• Winner of Multiple Moots / Mock Trials incl. the Aqeel H. Noorali Moot Cup

News

• Hamish Fraser and Colleen Cumbers recognised in the Pro Bono Recognition List 2026
• Members of Crown Office Chambers recognised for their Pro Bono work

Read more

Articles

• Supreme Court Removes Bar On Lost Years Damages For Young Children: CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2026] UKSC 5

Blogs

• How Can a Party Enforce a Foreign Arbitration Award in the Courts of England and Wales?

Events

• Crown Office Chambers at The National Pupillage Fair 2024

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

• Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR)
• Technology and Construction Bar Association (TECBAR)
• The Society of Construction Law (SCL)
• Professional Negligence Bar Association (PNBA)
• London Common Law & Commercial Bar Association (LCLCBA)
• Young International Arbitration Group (YIAG)
• Personal Injury Bar Association (PIBA)