Commercial
Colleen gained experience across the spectrum of Chambers’ commercial work during pupillage, benefitting from the supervision of leading barristers in this field.
Her recent work in this area includes:
- Commercial Chancery: Advising a shareholder and director of a company in relation to bringing a claim against a fellow shareholder following their misappropriation of company assets in breach of fiduciary duty. The shareholder alleged that they were a creditor of the company and were entitled to appropriate the sums in question. As the shareholder had since left the country, enforcement of any judgement was a relevant consideration.
- Sale of Goods: Settling the Defence in a claim for the costs of repairing an allegedly defective motorcycle on the basis that a product recall should have been issued. Issues included whether the Defendant, as the importer and mid-chain supplier of the product, owed a duty of care to the Claimant as the ultimate purchaser of the product.
- Contracts for Services: Settling the Reply and Defence to Counterclaim on behalf of a firm of solicitors claiming the sum of unpaid invoices from their clients. The dispute arose in relation to whether services provided in relation to advice on a right of way dispute fell within the existing conveyancing retainer or amounted to a distinct retainer for which additional sums were due.
- Contracts for Services: Successfully negotiating settlement in advance of the hearing of an application by the other side for summary judgement. The claim arose out of a contract between the Claimants and an estate agency. Colleen represented the Claimants, previously litigants in person, who had alleged that, pursuant to the terms of the contract between the parties, commission was not due to the estate agency, and that, in any event, the service was performed negligently and so there was a defence of set-off.
- Contracts for Services: Settling the Defence on behalf of a letting agent against whom tenants alleged breach of contract and/or negligence due to unsafe levels of lead being detected in a let property’s water supply. Issues included whether the letting agent was the correct party against which to pursue a claim and what steps a letting agent could reasonably be expected to have taken in pre-tenancy checks.
- Contracts for Services: Settling the Defence in a claim against a heating and plumbing company. Allegations included breach of the Equality Act 2010, specifically the failure of a service-provider to make reasonable adjustments for a disabled customer, and failure of the company to comply with the terms of its own responsive repairs policy.
- Contracts for Services and Consumer Law: Securing judgement for the Claimant in a claim against a removals company. In the course of the provision of the service, the Claimant’s items were damaged. Sums owed to the Claimant were in dispute due to a purported liability cap under the contract. The case turned on interpretation of contract terms between the parties and the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
- Civil Fraud: Settling the Defence on behalf of the promoter of a tax mitigation scheme in relation to an alleged secret commission claim (during pupillage).
- General Commercial: Advising on whether an exclusion clause excluding liability for anticipated savings operated to limit the Claimant’s recoverable losses and whether, in any event, the claim in its entirety was capped at £2 million on the basis of a liability cap. This matter included consideration of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (during pupillage).
Colleen is also a member of the Commercial Bar Association (COMBAR).
Selected Cases
View full profile »Awards
- Dean’s Award for Best Academic Performance in MA Law (Conversion)
- Inner Temple Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award
- Inner Temple Major Scholarship
- Inner Temple Exhibition Scholarship
- Winner of the Aqeel H. Noorali Moot Cup
- Winner of the Oxford Bar Society Non-Law Moot
- Winner of the 2 Hare Court Mock Trial
- Various Collections Prizes from Oriel College, University of Oxford
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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)
