Develop cutting edge strategies to this burgeoning area of personal injury law. Delve into the finer points of death benefit claims and the application of Section 54 of the of the Insurance Contracts Act to Life Insurance Claims. Obtain practical advice on effectively working with insurance companies and resolving claims through mediation or the AFCA dispute processes. Attend this seminar and maximise your success in this area. 243N48
Chair:
Adrian Coombes, Barrister, Seven Windeyer Chambers
Professional Skills
9.45am to 10.35am Practical Advice to Lawyers Acting for Parties Involved in Life Insurance Claims on Achieving a Good Outcome for Your Client
- “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”
- Information and evidence to assess a claim; what’s helpful, what’s not
Presented by Brett McKenzie-Craig, Senior Legal Counsel, AIA Australia
Description
Attend and earn 4 CPD units including
1.5 units in Substantive Law
2.5 units in Professional Skills
This program is applicable to practitioners from all States & Territories
9.00am to 9.45am Death Claims: Is the Death of the Public Policy “Forfeiture Rule” Exaggerated?
- When can the insurer avoid or reduce the cover for misrepresentation or failure to disclose?
- A round-up of cases involving critical illness/ trauma claims
Presented by Stephen Walsh, Barrister, Sir James Martin Chambers
10.35am to 11.20am Section 54 Insurance Contracts Act and Life Insurance Claims
- Section 54’s field of operation
- Opportunities for deployment in life insurance claims
- Group cover under compulsory superannuation: how s.54 can help members avoid slipping though the net
Presented by Colin Purdy, Barrister, Coram Chambers
Professional Skills
12.25 pm to 1.15pm AFCA Dispute Processes and the Role of the Lawyer
- AFCA’s jurisdictional and compensation limits
- How a lawyer can help at each stage of AFCA’s process
- How AFCA makes decisions: ‘fairness in all of the circumstances’
- Legal costs at AFCA
- Some common issues in TPD claims
Presented by Andrew Weinmann, Senior Ombudsman, Life Insurance, Australian Financial Complaints Authority
11.20am to 11.35am Morning Tea
Professional Skills
11.35am to 12.25pm Mediation of Insurance Claims
- Mediation advocacy in a contemporary context
- The National Mediation Accreditation System and practice standards
- Techniques for dealing with difficult people, difficult emotions
- Procedural issues including Court referrals and directions, support persons and professional conduct obligations, indemnity clauses in mediation agreements
Presented by Deborah Robinson, Barrister, 7 Wentworth Selborne
Presenters
Mr. Adrian Coombes, Barrister, Windeyer Chambers
Adrian was called to the Bar in 2014 and practises primarily in the areas of insurance, superannuation, commercial and personal injury disputes. He has appeared in numerous first instance and appellate TPD and income protection cases. Prior to coming to the Bar, Adrian was a senior associate at a mid-tier firm, practising in insurance and commercial law.
Mr. Stephen Walsh, Barrister, Sir James Martin Chambers
Fourteen years at the NSW Bar, during which Stephen has appeared in a range of civil and commercial matters, principally life insurance cases, contractual disputes, professional negligence, occupiers liability and property insurance disputes and taxation recovery matters. Prior to coming to the bar, Stephen had 14 years of experience as a solicitor/solicitor advocate specialising in general civil and commercial litigation, in particular product liability, professional negligence, building and construction, insurance policy disputes, contractual disputes, pollution/contamination claims, and health and safety prosecutions.
Mr. Colin Purdy, Barrister, Coram Chambers
Colin has a long background in insurance law, firstly as a solicitor and, more recently, at the NSW Bar. Life insurance is a key area of his practice, particularly Total & Permanent Disablement (TPD) and Income Protection claims. TPD has been a growth area in recent years and he has appeared in many of the reported first instance and appellate decisions, eg Chapman v United Super, Erzurumlu v Kellogg, Hannover Life v Dargan, Maund v FSS Trustee and Hellessey v MetLife (trial and appeal). Colin also practises extensively in personal injury and common law as well as building and construction and commercial litigation.
Mr. Brett McKenzie-Craig, Senior Legal Counsel, AIA Australia
Brett is an experienced financial services lawyer, having worked for the past 14 years as a Senior Lawyer or Head of Legal for life insurers and a superannuation fund. Prior to that Brett worked as General Counsel for a General Insurer, a Partner in private practice for two law firms and a Senior Manager at APRA. Brett currently works at AIA Australia Limited, which is a leading Australian life insurer.
Mr. Andrew Weinmann, Senior Ombudsman, Australian Financial Complaints Authority
Andrew has been an ombudsman at AFCA and its predecessor FOS since 2017. Most of his work is in life insurance, across all product types, and all kinds of issues, from sales to claims. He was previously in private practice for 15 years, working as a litigator in plaintiff firms.
Ms. Deborah Robinson, Barrister, 7 Wentworth Selborne
After 12 years at the Bar, combining advocacy and mediation work, Deborah commenced full time practice as a mediator in 2016. She has been conducting mediations since 2000, initially as a court appointed mediator/Registrar of the Supreme Court and from 2004 in private practice. Deborah is an accredited under the Australian National Mediator Accreditation Standards and is appointed to both the Supreme and District Court mediation panels. She was a member of the ADR Committee of the Bar Association from 2012-2018, making regular contributions to mediators’ conferences and continuing professional development seminars conducted by that Committee as well as policy developments under consideration by the Committee. Deborah completed a Certificate of Advanced Mediation from the Australian Commercial Disputes Centre in 2000. She held various positions in the Supreme Court from 1999 to 2004, including Registrar in Equity, the Professional Negligence List Registrar and the Possession List Registrar. During her time at the Court Deborah conducted court annexed mediations in Equity and Common Law, primarily in relation to disputes involving family provision, medical negligence and possession. In private practice from 2004 Deborah has successfully mediated across a wide range of disputes in the areas of TPD and IP insurance, commercial law, real property, equity and trusts, medical negligence, wills and estates, restraint of trade and personal injury and has conducted facilitated family conferences in Guardianship matters.
