Our work covers all areas of family law, with particular expertise in the following areas:
Call: 1982
"Thank you for your excellent advice, as ever."
Solicitor
Alicia is a specialist in public family law. She also has a huge depth of experience drawn from her long career at the Bar, including private family law, ancillary relief, inheritance, personal injury, and professional negligence.
She goes the extra mile to get results for her clients, whether acting for local authorities, parents, children or extended family members. Her style is to mediate, conciliate and negotiate, but she is equally adept at challenging and pressing the case vigorously in court.
Alicia frequently appears against silks on an equal footing. She is empathetic and sensitive with fragile clients. Her advice is sound and to the point. Her cross-examination is penetrating and often turns the course of a case. She is commended by judges for her crisp drafting. Above all, she is very well respected across the legal professions.
Away from court, she has been a member of Bar Council, serving on the Professional Conduct Committee; as well as covering many committee roles as a Common Councilman in the City of London. She has supervised the pupillages of fifteen current members of Chambers, and has been Chambers’ Treasurer. She delivers lectures regularly. She has served seven years as Deputy Chancellor of the Gloucester Diocese. Her academic background is in geography and archaeology, giving her additional skills to evaluate evidence.
To instruct Alicia or for more information…
Call: 020 7353 6961
Email: clerks@harcourtchambers.co.uk
Alicia is instructed in Care proceedings of all types and at all levels, from written or conference advice in pre-proceeding and interim stages, to establishing findings of fact and getting the best outcome at welfare stage. She aims for the right conclusions at the initial hearings, so few of her cases are reported on appeal, but she is confident in the higher courts, if needed.
Her work deals with every level of emotional, physical and sexual harm facing children and their relatives, including expert evidence about neglect, causation of harm, adequacy of parenting and the prospects for change. She is very experienced in working with intermediaries, lay advocates and family members, to support vulnerable clients, where there are mental health issues, substance abuse, domestic abuse and parental alienation. She has recently dealt with sexual infection of children, infant head injury, factitious/ induced illness, exploitation of children or adults, county lines drug problems, secure accommodation and deprivation of liberty. She frequently works with interpreters where English is not a first language. Her cases often have extra ramifications, which she enjoys exploring: such as the law relating to local government, education, housing, media and immigration. She delves into regulatory issues such as Special Guardianship support packages, child in care regulations, leaving care regulations, associated judicial review and the regulation of decision making by public bodies. She is especially familiar with adoption, both international and domestic, and covers wardship and inherent jurisdiction cases. She is sensitive towards non-traditional family structures and gender issues.
Represented the Father who was opposing an appeal by the local authority against a fact-finding decision of HH Judge Wicks. The appeal raised important and interesting legal issues concerning the rehearing of previous findings of fact, the relevance of propensity and ‘hindsight bias’, and the caution to be applied before making exculpatory findings. This case was reported in Local Government Lawyer.
Final hearing in care proceedings concerning 2 children, primarily related to M’s response to the younger child’s complex health needs. Final hearing.
Fact-finding in care proceedings concerning 2 children, primarily related to M’s response to the younger child’s complex health needs.
Damian Garrido KC and Alicia Collinson, instructed by Wilson Browne Solicitors, represented the Father in S (Children: Findings of Fact) [2023] EWCA Civ 1113. The Father was opposing an appeal by the local authority against…
Huge congratulations to our fantastic London Walk team; Alicia Collinson, Cecilia Barrett, Alison Williams, Frances Harris, Natasha Miller, Fazeela Ishmael and Alana Hughes, who successfully completed the 10k route and raised…
Representing the local authority, Alicia Collinson led Paige Campbell in Y (a child) & Anor [2023] EWFC 63 A final hearing in care proceedings concerning 2 children, primarily related to…