Kate McCue

Kate McCue is a Partner and Head of Technical within our Medical Negligence department. She is based in Bristol. 

Professional biography 

As Partner and Head of Technical, Kate plays a key role in overseeing the legal and technical standards of Simpson Millar's Medical Negligence department. She works closely with colleagues across the team to ensure cases are handled effectively, providing specialist guidance on complex legal matters, supervising solicitors and supporting the department's continued development. 

Her responsibilities include reviewing cases, advising colleagues on legal issues, delivering training and mentoring junior members of the team. Kate also oversees important aspects of the department's legal procedures, including reviewing legal costs, maintaining compliance with professional requirements and identifying opportunities to improve working practices. She is involved in resolving client concerns and complaints, helping to ensure that clients continue to receive a high standard of service. 

Alongside her leadership responsibilities, Kate continues to handle her own caseload of complex Medical Negligence claims. She has particular expertise in birth injuries, spinal injuries, delayed cancer diagnoses, negligent surgery and cases involving other serious, life-changing injuries and illnesses. Her work includes investigating medical treatment, working with independent medical experts, preparing detailed assessments of the financial impact of an injury and negotiating settlements. She has substantial experience of managing claims from their initial stages through to court proceedings and trial where necessary. 

Kate has worked in Personal Injury and Medical Negligence for over 20 years, developing extensive experience representing both people bringing compensation claims and organisations defending them. She qualified as a solicitor in April 2004 and began her career working on behalf of defendants, including employers, insurers and other organisations facing Personal Injury claims. 

During this time, Kate gained experience in cases involving accidents at work, road traffic accidents and injuries in public places. She also represented clients at court hearings, conducted investigations into serious accidents and contributed to the development of legal case management systems. 

In 2015, Kate made the decision to move into representing people bringing compensation claims. Her previous experience acting for defendants gave her a valuable understanding of how insurers and other organisations assess and respond to claims, which she now uses when developing legal strategies and negotiating settlements on behalf of her clients. 

Before joining Simpson Millar in January 2023, Kate spent more than seven years at another law firm in Plymouth, specialising in claimant Personal Injury and Medical Negligence. During this time, she developed particular expertise in complex claims involving serious injuries and substantial compensation awards. 

Alongside her legal career, Kate also worked as a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Law between October 2021 and April 2023. She taught subjects including Personal Injury, Medical Negligence, Dispute Resolution and aspects of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). Her role involved delivering lectures and workshops, assessing students' work and supporting their professional development. 

Kate's combination of experience representing both claimants and defendants, handling complex Medical Negligence cases and supervising legal teams has given her a broad understanding of the legal and practical challenges involved in pursuing compensation claims.