Kirsty McKinlay

Insurance Fraud

Kirsty has been working in the field of insurance fraud litigation for significant length of time and recognises that since 2013 concerns in relation to fraud and fundamental dishonesty have become even more important and relevant to insurers in all personal injury cases. Kirsty has a wide range of experience in insurance fraud litigation in the County Court and the High Court and is frequently involved in advising in cases at an early stage and thereafter maintaining her involvement through to trial including all drafting, advice and representation. Kirsty has extensive experience in relation to a wide range of issues including:

• exaggerated injury claims with particular emphasis on section 57 applications on high value claims including brain injury claims;
• tactical obtaining and deployment of surveillance evidence in cases of suspected fundamental dishonesty;
• fraudulent employer’s liability claims;
• fraudulent public liability claims;
• RTA insurance fraud claims including:
  • bogus passenger claims;
  • LVI claims;
  • fraud rings;
  • credit hire claims;
  • staged and semi staged or induced collisions.

Kirsty also has extensive experience of dealing with litigants in person, where this is becoming increasingly common once fundamental dishonesty issues have been raised. Kirsty is regularly instructed in relation to costs issues arising out of fraudulent claims and exaggerated claims including applications for wasted costs against legal representatives. Kirsty is noted for her thorough approach, detailed preparation and attention to detail. Kirsty endeavours to combine a professional and commercial attitude with a friendly and approachable style and is known for providing firm and clear advice in a palatable way. Kirsty is also known for her commercial approach, particularly in light of her costs knowledge.

Kirsty regularly provides seminars and training in relation to all aspects of insurance fraud litigation.

Clinical Negligence

Kirsty has been undertaking clinical negligence work for the last 12 years of her practice and is now Head of the Clinical Negligence team.  She has extensive experience in dealing with all manner of cases and is frequently involved at a very early stage including attending inquests and drafting the letter of claim.

Kirsty is adept at dealing sensitively with clients in difficult situations and being able to explain complex issues in simple terms. She is particularly noted for her meticulous written work, detailed preparation and attention to detail. She is also well known for her ability to address complex issues incisively with experts in conference and at trial.

Kirsty endeavours to combine a professional attitude with a friendly and approachable style and is known for providing firm and clear advice.

Kirsty has experience in a huge variety of clinical negligence cases including:

• injuries resulting in very serious injury or death including catastrophic brain injury;
• negligent prescribing in both adults and children;
• specialist ophthalmic cases including injuries sustained during ophthalmic surgery;
• failures to diagnose ectopic pregnancies resulting in fertility problems;
• various complications arising out of post operative bleeding;
• cases relating to patients suffering from dementia;
• deep vein thrombosis cases including resulting in virtual loss of use of a limb;
• failure to provide mental health services;
• injuries arising out of cosmetic surgery;
• injuries arising out of delays in treatment caused by pressure sores;
• negligent cosmetic surgery;
• inquests on behalf of families in cases concerning clinical negligence including those where an Article 2 wider investigation is required.

Personal Injury

Kirsty deals with higher value personal injury claims for both Claimants and Defendants in a wide range of personal injury litigation including all types of employer’s liability, public liability, clinical negligence, road traffic accident, cases including a chronic pain element, fatal accident, insurance claim issues and cases including a foreign dimension.

Kirsty regularly attends Joint Settlement Meetings and mediations both in person and conducted remotely.  Kirsty also has broad experience of a number of tribunals including courts up to the High Court but also including advocacy at inquests and arbitration hearings.

Kirsty has particular expertise in the field of costs and this enables her to provide commercial advice to both Claimants and Defendants from the outset of her involvement.

Kirsty is particularly noted for her thorough approach, meticulous written work, detailed preparation and attention to detail.  She is also adept at addressing complex issues incisively with experts in conference and at trial.

Kirsty endeavours to combine a professional attitude with a friendly and approachable style and is known for providing firm and clear advice.

Travel & International Personal Injury Law

Kirsty has experience of dealing with travel litigation claims over an extensive period of time including holiday sickness claims and more serious accidents abroad.  Kirsty is frequently instructed in cases where there is an issue relating to allegations of dishonesty.

Kirsty has also advised claimants and defendants in relation to jurisdictional issues arising out of personal injury claims abroad or where there may be another foreign element.

Kirsty is particularly noted for her thorough approach, meticulous written work, detailed preparation and attention to detail.  She is also adept at addressing complex issues incisively with experts in conference and at trial including foreign experts.

Kirsty endeavours to combine a professional attitude with a friendly and approachable style and is known for providing firm and clear advice.

Inquests & Public Inquiries

Kirsty has extensive experience of inquests which is particularly helpful in tandem with her clinical negligence and personal injury practices.  She regularly attends inquests on behalf of both bereaved families and other interested parties, including clinicians. As advocate, Kirsty also regularly advises on and attends Pre Inquest Hearings which she finds helpful in having an early handle on the issues and the approach of the Coroner dealing with the matter.

Kirsty provides both written advice and advice in conference on the approach to be adopted in each inquest including issues relating to disclosure, applications to be an interested party, statements, issues relating to Rule 22, the need for oral evidence and issues relating to Article 2 investigations.

Kirsty is noted for her sensitive handling of both witnesses and bereaved families during the inquest and in conference and is known for providing practical and pragmatic advice.

Kirsty also regularly provides advice on the implications of inquests and recovery of costs of inquests in subsequent proceedings.

Notable Cases

Examples of notable recent litigated cases include:

Insurance Fraud

• Represented the NHS in the case of Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital FT -v- Wilson securing a finding of fundamental dishonesty at trial in respect of the Claimant’s claim in excess of £500,000 followed by committal proceedings resulting in an immediate 4 month sentence.
• Represented a defendant insurer in a 2 day trial of a road traffic accident with allegations of a staged accident based upon expert engineering evidence and securing a finding of fraud.
• Represented a defendant in a 3 day trial of an alleged accident at work resulting in findings of fundamental dishonesty.

Clinical Negligence

• Represented a patient suffering an acquired brain injury following a prescription overdose in her successful claim where there were underlying causation issues and capacity issues;
• Represented a claimant who suffered a serious pre-existing spinal condition in his successful claim against the treating hospital where his rehabilitation was profoundly and catastrophically affected by delay due to pressure sores;

Catastrophic Injury Cases

• Represented a child claimant with a serious pre-existing condition in her successful claim against a utilities provider relating to catastrophic injury to the bowel;
• Represented a claimant in her successful claim following a minor road traffic accident which caused her to develop functional neurological disorder and become wheelchair bound.

Inquests

• Represented a psychological therapist as an interested party where a patient had subsequently committed suicide;
• Represented the family in relation to the death of a patient following a failure to undertake appropriate investigations into underlying health condition;
• Represented the local authority as employer of an Approved Mental Health Practitioner in a case where a patient had absconded during a section 2 assessment and subsequently died.

Appointments

Deputy District Judge (2020)

Recorder in Family Jurisdiction (2020)

Recorder in Civil Jurisdiction (2022)

Associations

Personal Injury Bar Association

Education

LLB (Hons), University of Newcastle Upon Tyne

Bar Vocational Course, Inns of Court School of Law

Awards

Hardwicke Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn

Prescribed Information

Kirsty McKinlay is a practising barrister, who is regulated by the Bar Standards Board. Details of information held by the BSB about Kirsty can be found here.

Kirsty’s clerks will happily provide no obligation quotations for all legal services that she provides. Their contact details can be found here.

It is most common for Kirsty to undertake Court and Mediation services for a brief fee plus additional refreshers. For advisory work and conferences it is most commonly charged at an hourly rate although fixed rates are available. Conditional Fee Agreements and Damages Based Agreements will be considered in cases with favourable prospects of success. Kirsty will typically return paperwork within 28 days, however professional commitments, complexity and volume of documentation can affect these approximate timescales.

Kirsty also undertakes Direct Access work. This work is undertaken on a contractual basis, as agreed between the client and Kirsty’s clerks. This is on fixed fee basis for a specific events such as a conference, advisory work, a hearing with additional hearing days (refreshers) or the drafting of specific documents. All work agreed to be undertaken by Kirsty with the fixed fee cost will be clearly outlined in the direct access contract signed by the client and will be payable in full prior to the commencement of the work.