W+K is proud to announce that two of our senior lawyers have been named as Rising Stars 2023 by NZ Lawyer in its latest report.

Laura Bain advises on professional liability, privacy and general liability matters. She has experience in general litigation, cyber response claims, representative actions, and warranty and indemnity matters. She is also experienced in mediation and alternative dispute resolution. Laura has advised on Christchurch earthquake claims, acted for insured engineers, architects and other industry professionals across a wide range of construction matters, and advised on cladding claims stemming from the 2017 Grenfell tragedy in the UK. She worked for an international law firm in London and has also completed a one-year secondment in the casualty claims team of an international insurer. Laura is excited to be back in her hometown of Christchurch and to bring top-tier insurance law advice to both insureds and insurers in the South Island.

Matthew Booth is an insurance litigation lawyer covering a wide range of areas, including acting for fire and general insurers on material damage, public liability, professional indemnity and statutory liability claims. He assists in leading a high-performing team of insurance litigators and is regularly consulted by clients who recognise his outstanding technical ability and pragmatic approach to achieve impressive results. Over the years, Matthew has appeared as lead or junior counsel in numerous mediations and judicial settlement conferences, as well as hearings in the Canterbury Earthquake Insurance Tribunal, the Greater Christchurch Claims Resolution Service and the High Court. He was also a finalist in the Young Insurance Professional of the Year category at the 2022 Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance awards.

Congratulations to Laura and Matthew on this industry recognition of their excellent legal work and contribution to W+K and clients.