Alan Collins

Alan is one of the best known solicitors in the field of child abuse law and has acted in many high profile cases, including the Jimmy Savile and Haut de la Garenne abuse scandals. He also specialises in serious personal injury cases including head and spinal injury claims.

Alan represents clients in this country and internationally and has recently been working in Australia and California on a series of sexual abuse cases.

Best career moment: Acting for the victims of sexual abuse at Green Field House, a children’s home in Berkshire. Occurring in the 1960s, it was considered to have been one of the worse cases ever to have come to public notice. As a result of the investigatory work undertaken by Alan, it was proved that the home had been the centre of what was a paedophile ring. All the victims that he acted for were compensated for the considerable harm they had suffered.

Alan’s notable cases include:

• the Jimmy Savile sexual abuse allegations
• the Haut de la Garenne children’s home in Jersey
• the Robert Dando Baptist church abuse case
  Dando, a minister, is serving a prison sentence in the US for child abuse in his congregation in England and in the United States.  Alan is acting on behalf of the abused victims 
• the Anglo-Kutchi Medium School case
  Schoolboys were sexually abused at their school in India by their English headmaster Derek Slade. Alan is helping to sue those responsible in the UK in respect to what happened
• the King’s School in Rochester
  Alan represents the victims of sexual abuse by former teacher Bruce Roth
• the Anglemoss and Derek Slade cases
  Alan acts for a number of victims who were abused whilst pupils at Duncan Hall and St George’s Schools
• the Green Field House abuse case in Berkshire 
  There were three divisions of cases arising from sexual abuse and exploitation of boys during the 1960s. Alan is acting on behalf of the victims
• the Cyntwell High School for Boys 
  Alan is working on a group case arising out of the sexual abuse of pupils at this Cardiff school during the 1960s
• the Heron case
  Alan acts for the victims who were sexually abused by their music teacher.  The teacher fled to the Philippines to avoid justice but was eventually extradited.  Alan successfully obtained a freezing order to prevent dissipation of assets
• the Portsmouth Cottage Homes cases
  Alan successfully acted for a group of abuse survivors from the 1940s to 1950s

Alan is a fellow of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) and a director for the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers (ACAL).  ACAL is a support group set up by solicitors and other professionals involved in the field of obtaining compensation for victims of abuse.

He qualified as a solicitor in 1990 and joined Pannone as a partner in March 2012.  He regularly appears on television and radio in relation to his cases including the BBC and ITV national news, Radio 4 ‘Today’ and media channels in Australia.