Suzanne Chalmers

Practice Areas

Suzanne specialises in four areas of practice: property damage; professional negligence; insurance disputes; and complex personal injury claims. Her strength lies in her ability to combine her expertise in insurance law; extensive experience of handling expert witnesses in a wide range of disciplines; and detailed knowledge of the factual and legal issues frequently occurring in claims arising out of damage to persons or property. She is often instructed to handle both underlying claims and associated policy coverage issues.

Her recent property damage cases have involved explosions, floods, landslides, storms and contamination, affecting a wide range of properties such as luxury real estate, housing developments, commercial properties and even a solar farm.

Suzanne’s personal injury practice generally involves cases of severe and permanent disablement, such as brain damage, severe spinal injury or loss of limb. She has also developed expertise in claims involving complex causation issues including the occurrence of neurological disorders, pain disorders and psychiatric injury. She regularly deals with difficult liability issues (for example deliberate acts, modern slavery or ex turpi causa) and allegations of fraud..

Reported cases include: Pickett v Balkind [2022] 4 WLR 88; Arch Insurance (UK) Ltd v McCullough [2021] EWHC 2798 (Comm); Moorjani v Kilcoyne [2020] EWHC 3463; Hochtief (UK) Construction Ltd v Atkins Ltd [2019] EWHC 2109; Beaumont v Ferrer [2016] EWCA Civ 768; Joyce v O’Brien [2014] 1 WLR 70; Shinedean Ltd v Alldown Demolition Ltd [2006] 1 WLR 2696.

Career

Called to the Bar: 1995 Recorder: 2010

Professional Memberships

BILA, LCLCBA, PNBA, TECBAR, PIBA