Colleen E. Hayes
Partner
Experience
Colleen E. Hayes counsels and defends national and international insurers in complex commercial litigation and coverage disputes. She handles a wide variety of first- and third-party insurance coverage claims and routinely advises clients in cases involving construction defects, personal injury, property damage, and bad faith. She has extensive experience handling coverage contract disputes, including matters involving general liability, first-party property, automobile liability, and product recall claims.
During law school, Colleen served as an intern to the Hon. Rayford Means in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. She also held an internship with the Civil Justice Clinic at the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law.
Related Areas
Industries
Experience Highlights
- Obtained summary judgment for an insurer against underlying plaintiff and insured for alleged catastrophic injuries from a fall at a construction project
- Obtained ruling that a policy’s pollution exclusion barred coverage in an environmental coverage litigation over allegedly contaminated soil
- Successfully represented an insurer against a claim for additional insured coverage arising out of an underlying personal injury action
Honors & Awards
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers, Rising Star, 2020-21
Background
Admissions
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second and Third Circuits
Education
- Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 2011
- Order of the Coif
- Villanova University, B.A., 2003
Professional Affiliations
- Defense Research Institute
- Young Lawyers Steering Committee, Social Media Committee: Co-Chair, 2018-20, 2021-22
- Women in The Law Committee: Co-Vice Chair, 2020-21
- Social Media Committee: Co-Vice Chair, 2017-18
- Philadelphia Association of Defense Counsel
- Executive Committee, 2017 to present
- Treasurer, 2021-22
- Secretary, 2020-21
- Pennsylvania Bar Association
- Young Lawyers Division: PADC Liaison, 2016-17
Community Involvement
- Philadelphia VIP, 2016-21
News & Knowledge
Publications & Events
- “Close Encounters of the COVID Kind and What It Means for Insurance Coverage,” Counterpoint, December 2020
- “Cloudy with a Chance of Rain,” Raising the Bar, Issue 12, December 2018
- “Oil’s Risky Business: Defined Policy Terms. There is No Substitute,” DRI’s Covered Events, Issue 9, October 2017
- “Assault on The Citadel of Privilege: Bad Facts Make Bad Law,” co-author, Counterpoint, Volume 1, February 2017
- “Case Law Update: Auto, Coverage, and General Liability,” (Co-Presenter), Philadelphia Association of Defense Counsel Annual Meeting, June 2019
- “How to Handle Multiple Claimants and Insureds with Insufficient Policy Limits,” (Co-Presenter), GS Webinar Series, July 31, 2024
- “A Pennsylvania Primer: Critical Insurance Coverage Issues in the Keystone State,” (Co-Presenter), GS Webinar Series, November 14, 2023
- “Total Recall: An In-Depth Look at Issues that Arise with Product Recall Policies,” (Co-Presenter), October 2020
RECENT INSIGHTS
September 27, 2021