Insurance

Medical indemnity, health and ageing

We're one of the largest and most reputable health law practices in Australia. Our team has decades of experience acting for large government and private health sector insurers, along with their insureds. Health sector insurance claims can lead to unwanted public relations and reputational impacts unless they're properly managed. Our longevity in the sector speaks to our ability to navigate these risks sensitively and strategically.

We're a commercially focused team, renowned for the speed and integrity with which we manage claims. Our lawyers are well regarded across the industry, maintaining constructive relationships with insurers, medical defence organisations, plaintiff firms and medical experts.

We act for a wide variety of service providers and practitioners, including hospitals, aged-care providers, medical and allied health professionals and emergency services. We've supported clients appearing before government inquiries, including royal commissions into aged care, sex abuse and disability services. Our expertise includes:

• litigated clinical negligence claims
• clinical trials litigation
• class actions
• disciplinary investigations (including AHPRA, HCC, HCCC and OHO)
• coronial investigations
• complaint resolution processes
• health privacy claims

Personal injury

Our team has been involved in some of the most significant public liability litigation in Australia. Our successful management of litigated and non-litigated claims continues to underpin the firm's reputation with insurers, insureds, brokers and claims management agencies.

We act in claims involving government departments, statutory authorities, schools, universities and many of Australia's top 100 companies. We provide advice across the full spectrum of public liability injury claims, from catastrophic personal injuries claims to a range of other liability claims encompassing personal injury elements. Our team will run cases to judgment when necessary but focus on achieving quick and cost-effective outcomes in all matters, ideally avoiding the costs of litigation. We regularly act in coronial inquests, and have experience handling mass tort injury claims, including class actions.

We are also highly experienced handling worker related claims involving recoveries in insurance.

Property

Our property insurance legal team has more than 30 years' experience managing litigated and non-litigated commercial property and industrial business interruption claims. Our lawyers are trusted by insurers to provide coverage advice, manage the defence of first-party claims and pursue recoveries. Our specialist expertise includes:

• fire, storm and flood
• infectious diseases (COVID-19)
• oil and gas processing, pipeline claims, mine collapses
• machinery breakdown, turbine failure, power generation
• toxic waste
• hotel, warehouse and industrial premises

Lander & Rogers has a comprehensive expert witness database, and where necessary can seek specialist expertise from our firm's leading expertise in real estate and property law. We're also well connected at the senior level of all major brokers and loss adjusters.

We're a highly-experienced team with unrivalled knowledge of all the major players and policies operating in the Asia Pacific market. Our clients include AIG, Allianz Global Corporate & Speciality, AXA XL, FM Global, IAG, Liberty, various London syndicates, Swiss Re and Zurich.

Recoveries

We're the first insurance law practice in Australia to establish a specialist recoveries team. For more than a decade we've been providing commercially focused advice that promotes fast, cost-effective results across all insurance lines.

Having a systematic focus on recoveries is an important source of income and reduces the impact on insurers' policyholders. Maximising returns and reducing costs requires a level of insight that comes only with experience – and we've been managing subrogation claims on behalf of local and international insurers for more than a decade. We've pursued some of the largest recovery actions in Australia and are renowned for swift assessments. We'll inform you at the earliest opportunity if a commercial reward is unlikely.

Our partners are often on hand during major events where there is subrogation potential. We've pursued some of the largest recovery actions in Australia, including the Queensland Floods, Varanus Island Apache, Myer Hobart, and the Essendon DFO Plane Crash.

Evidence and investigations

Our team builds relationships and communicates clearly. We work constructively with insureds and use an extensive network of experts to quickly identify, preserve and retain the strongest possible body of evidence. We work with the loss adjuster to ensure an appropriate assessment method is used.

Insurance disputes and litigation

We take a commercial approach that avoids unnecessary interlocutory steps. When it comes to insurance disputes, our lawyers resolve small-value claims as early as possible and with limited costs. High value claims requiring litigation are quickly progressed to mediation, where most are resolved. If court proceedings are necessary, we'll advise you on the best possible forum for recovery.

Minimising costs

Our costs profile is tailored according to the value and complexity of the recovery. We project manage experts, loss adjusters and other consultant costs, ensuring fees are claimable as recovery rather than insurance costs.

Class actions

We're a leading class action litigation team in Australia, having been involved in class actions since the inception of the regime in 1992. Our team has extensive experience acting for insurers, and defending companies and individuals named in class action lawsuits across a wide variety of industries.

We have acted as monitoring and defence counsel in many landmark Australian class actions. We're known for our ability to navigate complex relationships between multiple parties and legal representatives. Our clients include all major local and international insurers and their insureds.

Our experience includes class actions concerning:

• shareholder and securities claims
• natural disasters
• failed financial products
• consumer protection
• product liability

When acting as monitoring counsel, we engage proactively on behalf of international and local insurers at primary and excess level. Our lawyers understand how to protect insurers' needs, while managing class action complexities, including allocation issues, primary layer relationships with excess layers, defendant strategies, litigation funders and association protocols.

As defence counsel, we provide insurers and insureds with a robust defence, in conjunction with strategic and commercial advice informed by decades of class action experience. Our accumulated knowledge equips us to minimise financial and reputational risks while maximising protection against new claims.

Directors' and officers' liability

Our reputation as one of Australia's pre-eminent specialist D&O teams has been earned over many decades servicing the legal needs of large local and international insurers, as well as insured corporations, directors and officers. We're an experienced team known for our monitoring and coverage expertise, along with our extensive experience in claims defence and regulatory investigations. We understand the personal and reputational impacts on directors and their families and navigate these issues with empathy and sensitivity.

Our lawyers have a deep understanding of D&O claims and their complexities, along with expansive knowledge of class action frameworks in federal and state jurisdictions.

We've acted in most of the major D&O claims in Australia, including ION, Octaviar, Timbercorp, Allco, Babcock & Brown, Centaur, Dick Smith, Great Southern, Hastie, Australian Water Holdings, Sigma, Arrium, Gunns, Newcrest and AWB.

Our expertise includes:

• multiple insured party conflicts
• excess layers and association protocols
• close liaison and strategy development involving multiple defence counsel
• common exclusions and limitations of liability
• securities class actions
• defence and monitoring

Cyber and technology

We're a technology-centred law firm with decades of experience servicing the needs of Australian and international insurers. Our services combine deep IT industry knowledge with specialised expertise in incident response and coverage.

A unique blend of IT, regulatory and insurance industry expertise positions us to swiftly and effectively manage system breaches and associated risks.

Our services and expertise include:

• data and privacy breaches
• IT incident response and risk management
• mandatory notifications
• expert coverage advice
• working with small, medium or large insureds

Incident response

The first 24 hours after a cyber incident are critical to an affected business. We can help steer these businesses in the right direction immediately. Our team works with a trusted network of IT systems experts to rapidly and cost-effectively manage the aftermath of a breach and minimise the impact.

Privacy and mandatory breach notifications

Our extensive knowledge of Australian privacy law enables us to quickly assess and manage any privacy breaches, manage communications to customers, and ensure compliance with any mandatory notification requirements to regulators. We also work with a trusted network of public relations firms to create an effective public relations and communications strategy and mitigate potential reputational issues.

Coverage advice

Our insurance lawyers have decades of experience as coverage counsel across the Asia Pacific. We're known for our ability to advise on complex coverage issues.

Construction and engineering

We're a team of problem solvers who are trusted by the underwriters of large and complex construction, engineering and property risks.

Over the past 50 years, we've represented insurers in some of the largest litigated and non-litigated construction and engineering claims in Australia. Our dedicated construction insurance team is market leading in expertise. We understand the complexities and interaction of the various insurance covers on any project.

Many of us occupy leadership roles on peak construction, engineering and insurance bodies. We maintain meaningful industry relationships, and have a deep understanding of the multi-layered, international relationships within the insurance sector.

We treat litigation as a last resort, but we're always prepared for it. Our team has the expertise to litigate even the largest and most complex claims and disputes, but we always adjust our resources to match the scale of the matter.

Our status as an industry leader is reflected in the breadth of our national and international client base. We also advise engineering consultancy firms, large architecture firms and construction firms seeking advice on cover and contractual indemnity provisions.

Our expertise includes:

• professional indemnity (engineers, architects, building surveyors and certifiers)
• contract works
• property
• business interruption
• delay in start up
• product liability
• general liability

Insurance transactions and regulation

Decades of experience servicing the insurance industry positions us to provide exceptional commercial legal advice to Australian and international insurers, reinsurers and intermediaries.

We're a responsive team that delivers comprehensive and cost-effective regulatory and compliance support to the insurance and financial services sector. We specialise in advising large regulated entities and have provided advice and representation during significant investigations and inquiries into corporate conduct.

Mergers and acquisitions

We have an in-depth understanding of Australian regulations and vast experience in international transactions. Our knowledge of the insurance industry positions us to provide insurers with specialist advice and transactional support.

Our expertise includes:

• strategy and structuring
• negotiation and document preparation
• transaction management, closing and integration
• digital document management and due diligence solutions
• regulatory approvals

Compliance

Our experienced team works with regulated entities to cost-effectively identify and mitigate compliance risk. Through our award-winning iHub, we work with our clients to co-design digital systems that streamline and automate compliance activities.

Our expertise includes:

• compliance audits
• compliance strategies
• process and system design
• technological solutions

Life insurance

Life insurance is a unique product line requiring specialist legal expertise. We're a firm with more than 20 years' experience managing litigated and non-litigated claims for life insurers and trustees.

The life insurance industry has been subjected to ongoing scrutiny over recent years. An evolving legal landscape requires a legal team that understands the impacts on product policies and claims management.

Our insurance lawyers provide practical, commercially-focused advice that supports our clients to resolve claims swiftly and cost-effectively. Our lawyers retain a comprehensive knowledge of current and emerging regulations and case law, often providing briefings to clients on changes to legislation and claims management initiatives.

Our expertise includes:

• claims arising under life, income protection, salary continuance, critical conditions and trauma policies
• retail and group life insurance claims involving income protection, total and permanent disability, death, trauma and salary continuance
• fraud and non-disclosure under the Insurance Contracts Act
• policy construction and interpretation disputes
• complaints lodged with the Financial Ombudsman Service and Superannuation Complaints Tribunal

Financial institutions

We have specialist expertise working in the financial institutions sector, helping our clients to navigate the unique risks they carry.

We act for financial institutions, product issuers, fund managers, auditors, accountants, mortgage and loan intermediaries, brokers, financial services providers (AFSLs), individual financial advisers, superannuation funds and their insurers.

Our track record includes the successful defence of claims arising from:

• investment, financial planning and credit advice
• insolvent trading
• theft, embezzlement and employee fraud
• unit pricing errors
• misleading and deceptive conduct in product disclosure statements
• general professional negligence

Professional indemnity

We're an experienced team with specialist knowledge across all varieties of professional indemnity insurance products.

We are currently involved in much of the leading litigation in Australia, including class actions and multi-party professional indemnity actions, with our instructions spanning the provision of indemnity advice to insurers to the conduct of defences on behalf of insureds.

We act for local and overseas insurers representing a range of professions, including accountants, tax advisers, administrators/liquidators and all financial services providers, IT, real estate and building professionals, lawyers, and medical, para-medical and allied health professionals.