Catherine Doran
Call: 2008
Barrister
Catherine Doran specialises in insolvency, commercial and property law and has extensive High Court experience. She is ranked as a leading junior by Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners, where she is described as “an excellent advocate”. Having previously been appointed Junior Counsel to the Crown, Catherine has a particular expertise in directors’ disqualification.
In 2023 Catherine was appointed as a court examiner. This appointment is effective for 5 years, starting from Wednesday 1st of March.
Catherine is also called to the Bar of Trinidad & Tobago.
Catherine has extensive experience of corporate and personal insolvency, with a particular interest in directors’ disqualification.
When Catherine was on HM Attorney General’s Panel she regularly acted for the Secretary of State and Official Receiver in disqualification claims, section 17 applications, BRO claims and public interest winding up petitions. She is therefore well placed to advise individuals against whom proceedings have been threatened or commenced, and is frequently instructed by directors.
Catherine’s practice includes drafting and appearing on winding up and bankruptcy petitions, applications relating to statutory demands, annulments, validation orders, applications for administration orders and injunctions to prevent presentation and advertisement.
Catherine acts for and against officeholders in transaction avoidance claims, misfeasance claims, possession claims, applications for private examination, remuneration applications and extending administrations.
Catherine has written chapters of Tolley’s Insolvency Law and the Insolvency Litigation Handbook. She was a member of the committee which drafted the Company Directors Disqualification Practice Direction.
Reported cases include:
- Re Kids Company – Official Receiver v Atkinson and others [2020] EWHC 2839 and [2021] EWHC 175 – acting for the trustees who successfully resisted a disqualification order
- Georgallides v Secretary of State for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy [2020] EWHC 768 – acting for a director seeking to rescind his disqualification undertakings
- Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills v Rahman [2017] EWHC 2468 (Ch) – acting in an appeal against a disqualification period
- Cook v Revenue and Customs Commissioners [2017] B.P.I.R. 1468 – appearing in a bankruptcy annulment application
- Canning v Irwin Mitchell LLP [2017] EWHC Civ 718 – acting in an appeal in bankruptcy proceedings
- Pioneer Cladding Ltd v John Graham Construction Ltd [2015] EWHC 1314 (QB) – appearing in a case considering whether leave under section 130 Insolvency Act 1986 was required.
Catherine has considerable experience in the county courts and First Tier Tribunal (Residential Property) acting for landlords and tenants. She has appeared in cases involving trespassers, rent arrears, service charge disputes, breaches of covenant, section 168 Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 determinations and forfeiture. She has advised on various issues arising from residential and business tenancies.
Catherine has advised on real property matters including boundary disputes, restrictive covenants and nuisance claims. She appeared in the Court of Appeal for the successful respondents in a neighbour dispute in Cocking v Eacott [2016] EWCA Civ 140.
Catherine often advises and appears for mortgagees in possession and forfeiture cases.
Catherine has considerable experience of company law, including unfair prejudice petitions, applications to extend time for the registration of charges and restoring companies to the Register. Catherine has acted for individuals seeking to trade under what would otherwise be a prohibited name, pursuant to section 216 Insolvency Act 1986 and wrote the chapter on prohibited names in the Insolvency Litigation Handbook.
Catherine has a particular interest in claims and applications involving directors’ disqualification.
Catherine has experience of in-person and remote mediations across the range of her practice areas
Catherine’s commercial practice includes breach of contract claims, shareholder disputes, guarantees, loan agreements and enforcement of judgments.
She recently appeared in a commercial matter in the Trinidad & Tobago Court of Appeal.
- Recent article on directors’ disqualification compensation orders. Read the full article here.
- Catherine gave an interview about the Kids Company case shortly after judgment was handed down. Watch the full interview here.
- Regular contributor to Tolley’s Insolvency Law
- Contributor to all editions of the Insolvency Litigation Handbook
- Author of Case Reports for Corporate Rescue and Insolvency journal
- Author of Case Analysis for Lexis Nexis PSL
- “She is excellent and robust. She is good with difficult clients. Her advocacy is very precise” (Insolvency, Legal 500 UK Bar 2026)
- “Catherine is an excellent advocate and renders good advice, pitched at the level of the client.” (Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2026)
- “Catherine Doran is very pragmatic and really good with clients.” (Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2026)
- “She is a very intelligent lawyer and is great orally and can produce excellent written opinions.” (Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2025)
- “Catherine is highly skilled and detail-oriented. She instils confidence in those instructing her because she is able to grasp the issues in the case and provide practical solutions.”(Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2025)
- “Very thorough advocate, personable and reliable, steady pair of hands in distress scenarios.” (Insolvency, Legal 500 UK Bar 2024)
- “She is intelligent, very technical and has the ability to pick up on complex matters.“ (Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2024)
- “Catherine is always a pleasure to work with. She is responsive, commercial and very experienced.“ (Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2024)
- “She is an excellent advocate.“ (Restructuring/Insolvency, Chambers UK Bar 2024)
- “Very easy to deal with and technically brilliant.” (Insolvency, Legal 500 UK Bar 2022)
- “Catherine is brilliant technically and is good with clients.” (Insolvency, Legal 500 UK Bar 2022)
- “Very knowledgeable and calm. She is able to cut through to the heart of issues and provide concise advice.” (Insolvency, Legal 500 UK Bar 2021)
- “She is extremely competent and lends weight to clients’ internal teams.” (Insolvency, Legal 500 UK Bar 2020)
- “She can pick up complex instructions and analyse evidence in a short space of time.” (Insolvency, The Legal 500 UK Bar 2019)
Catherine read law at Trinity College, Cambridge, where she was elected president of her college law society and was twice awarded the Lizette Bentwich prize. She was an Inner Temple Exhibitioner during her BVC year and was called to the Bar in 2008. She completed her pupillage at Radcliffe Chambers and became a full member in October 2009.
- R3
- Chancery Bar Association
- Read Catherine’s Privacy Notice, Data Protection Policy and Disposal Policy.
