Life in Insurance Law

WILLIAM ROBINSON

Managing Partner – Perth Wotton + Kearney

From wintry Melbourne to sunny Perth My accidental journey to insurance litigation began whilst at law school in Melbourne where my team and I were competing in the International Maritime Law Arbitration Moot. After the final rounds of the competition, a Partner at Phillips Fox (now DLA Piper) who was judging the Moot asked if I’d be interested in working as a paralegal at his firm. Despite having absolutely no idea what Phillips Fox specialised in (turns out it was insurance law), I jumped at the opportunity. Little did I know at the time, but this relatively swift decision would focus the direction of my life and journey in the law for the next decade. I spent 7 years at Phillips Fox/DLA Piper working across a variety of insurance litigation – from Trade & Transport, Marine Insurance, Public Liability and Class Actions. It gave me a wonderful base on which to grow as a junior lawyer and eventually led to me joining Wotton + Kearney. After a number of years in Wotton + Kearney’s Melbourne office, I was asked if I would move to WA to lead our Perth office as its Managing Partner. Having visited WA previously (and knowing the surf on offer down in Yallingup), I was very keen to make the trip West, which I have called home for the last 6 years. We have around y30 staff and 3 partners in Perth, making us one of the largest insurance litigation firms in WA.

Was that a bushfire or an insurance claim? Imagine walking into work each day not knowing whether you will be investigating exploding candles, inmates rioting at a maximum-security prison or entire country towns being wiped out by bushfires. That’s pretty much the life of an insurance lawyer at Wotton + Kearney. We don’t do ‘’crash and bash’’ or ‘’workers’ comp’’, but a vast array of insurance-related disputes and litigation that traverses many areas of law. Junior lawyers, graduates, and paralegals at Wotton + Kearney are exposed to these different areas of law. Our firm is split into three practice areas: •General Liability Litigation – which involves catastrophic injury claims sustained in all areas of life (sporting events, rollercoasters, whale watching, shopping centres) and property damage, fire, and other claims where our

‘’insureds’’ are being sued for damage allegedly caused by their negligent actions. •Financial Lines Litigation – this area involves defending all manner of professionals, from lawyers, doctors, engineers, architects, directors & offices, who are alleged to have been negligent in the performance of their professional duties. Their professional indemnity policies (or directors’ and officers’ insurance) will provide cover and (most importantly) Wotton + Kearney’s specialist services when faced with difficult times in their professional career. •Property & Energy – this part of our firm focuses on providing complex and detailed coverage advice to insurers under ‘’first party’’ insurance policies. These policies are engaged when major mine sites and other industrial assets are shut down due to a variety of factors, often leading to heavy business interruption losses (think billons, not just millions). The most satisfying aspect of insurance litigation is the variety of claims, industries, and areas of law that we are exposed to each day, combined with the incredible people we work with and serve as our clients. We do not work on one big matter for many years, subjecting our paralegal and graduates to the despair of large discovery. Our aim is to develop well-rounded, valuedriven litigators that love what they do.