Andrew Colman is a leading junior of great intellect and experience, held in high esteem for his particular ability to cut through complex issues of fact or law in order to get to the heart of the matter.
Over the past twenty years he has established a solid reputation as one of the foremost practitioners in the field of professional discipline. After presenting some of the GMC’s most serious and substantial cases, for the past decade he has deployed his expertise in the defence of doctors, dentists and other healthcare professionals at the MPTS, GDC, HCPTS and elsewhere. He is commonly instructed in lengthy and complex Fitness to Practise cases. He also acts for and advises regulators (for example, the GOC and GPhC) and registrants in other professions, such as solicitors.
Andrew appears regularly in the High Court, on statutory appeals, judicial reviews and ancillary matters. He is well equipped for such work by his previous experience of appellate advocacy, up to the highest levels (Privy Council/ House of Lords) and his past history of practice in extradition.
Andrew is a member of the Association of Regulatory & Disciplinary Lawyers, the Health and Safety Lawyers’ Association and the Criminal Bar Association and a former director of the Bar Mutual Indemnity Fund.
Andrew is recommended in the current editions of The Legal 500 and Chambers UK and won the award for Professional Disciplinary and Regulatory Law Junior of the Year in The Legal 500 UK Bar Awards 2024.
Andrew accepts Direct Access instructions.
Andrew is a leading junior of great intellect and experience, held in high esteem for his fairness and integrity and for his particular ability to cut through complex issues of fact or law in order to get to the heart of the matter.
For the past fifteen years he has specialised exclusively in the area of professional discipline, establishing a solid reputation as one of the foremost practitioners in the field. He formerly presented some of the GMC’s most serious and substantial cases, but now deploys his expertise in the defence of doctors, dentists and other healthcare professionals at the MPTS, GDC, HCPTS and elsewhere. He is commonly instructed in lengthy and complex Fitness to Practise cases. He also acts for and advises regulators (for example, the GOC and GPhC) and registrants in other professions, such as solicitors.
Andrew appears regularly in the High Court, on statutory appeals, judicial reviews and ancillary matters. He is well equipped for such work by his previous experience of appellate advocacy, up to the highest levels (Privy Council/ House of Lords) and his past history of practice in extradition.
Andrew also lectures and publishes articles on the subject of professional discipline and has provided training in the field to FTP Panelists, expert witnesses and other advocates.
GMC v Mr Desai
Andrew represented a very senior consultant surgeon and former Clinical Director, accused of allowing the colorectal polyps of a private patient he was keeping under surveillance for many years to develop into rectal cancer through gross neglect. His defence was that the cancer was a new and unusually rapid development, unrelated to the previous polyps. Despite being unable to call any expert support for this view, to counter the expert evidence of the GMC, Andrew persuaded the MPTS to find in his favour and the case concluded with no finding of misconduct or further action.
GMC v Dr Rowles
Andrew represented a senior consultant physician and former Clinical Director, accused of allowing an 82-year-old patient to die of sepsis, without appropriate treatment or consent, and subsequently making false entries and lying about it to the family, the hospital enquiry and the Coroner. After the Medical Practitioners Tribunal cleared her of all the allegations of dishonesty, they found her admitted clinical failings to be fully remediated and took no further action. Subsequently, the Hospital Trust’s MHPS proceedings were also closed without a hearing, bringing an end to over 8 years of investigations.
GMC v Dr Cadman
Andrew represented a consultant radiologist, accused of rape by his former fiancée (also a doctor) and domestic violence by another former girlfriend (a police officer) and similar psychopathically controlling behaviour, amounting to mental cruelty by both. After a fully contested 3-week hearing, none of the serious factual allegations were found proved and the Tribunal found no misconduct or impairment.
GMC v Dr Chopra
Case involving multiple probity and performance allegations against a doctor, concluded after 3 years of tortuous proceedings before the GMC, NHSE and the High Court, in a finding of no impairment and no warning.
HCPC v B
Andrew represented a senior Hearing Aid Dispenser accused of misconduct in respect of audiometry performed on an elderly patient with tinnitus. After a hearing involving complex expert evidence on both sides, the Registrant was completely vindicated by a finding that the case against her was not well founded at the Grounds stage. The case against her was thereby closed.
MPTS v Karim
Andrew successfully defended top robotic assisted urological surgeon Omer Karim. Mr Karim is acknowledged as an innovative leader in his field and was voted to be one of the top ten prostate cancer surgeons in the UK. He faced allegations of intimidating and threatening behaviour, dating back over four years and originating from a dispute within his NHS Trust, after Mr Karim was a whistle-blower to Monitor. All of those contested allegations were found not proved.
GDC v Kumar
Andrew appeared on behalf of the dentist.
He represented a leading Harley Street provider of Invisalign orthodontic treatment accused of misconduct by providing substandard treatment and misleading information. The dentist was cleared of the probity allegations and no impairment was found.
GMC v Dr Pandya
Andrew appeared on behalf of the doctor.
Allegation of misconduct by performing a cosmetic labia reduction with a result equivalent to female genital mutilation (FGM). After an extended hearing, the doctor was cleared and his fitness to practice found not impaired.
GMC v B
Andrew appeared on behalf of the doctor.
Representing a leading transplant surgeon accused of marking his initials on a patient’s liver, Andrew persuaded the Interim Orders Panel to make no order in the face of a submission that he should be suspended. The novel urgent High Court application to terminate an immediate order for conditional registration and subsequent successful appeal against the finding of misconduct. allegation had attracted worldwide media attention.
Bhavsar v GDC
Andrew appeared on behalf of the dentist.
Novel urgent High Court application to terminate an immediate order for conditional registration and subsequent successful appeal against the finding of misconduct.
Andrew appears for medical professionals at inquests into the death of patients.
Inquest into the death of Averil Hart
Four-week inquest into the death of a young student from the consequences of untreated anorexia nervosa. This was the last of a series of high profile inquests conducted into five anorexia deaths by the same Coroner. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman had also enquired into and reported on this death. Andrew represented one of the GPs from the University Health Centre whose treatment of the deceased was in question. The Coroner’s conclusions avoided any individual criticism of the GP or the Health Centre.
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