The Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Lismore v GLJ [2022] NSWCA 78 The NSW Court of Appeal has overturned a first instance decision and stayed historic child abuse proceedings in circumstances where the alleged perpetrator had died before the allegations were put to him. The case was stayed despite evidence […]
In the wake of the High Court’s landmark decision in Voller, social media platform providers and their insurers are still awaiting clarity on the defamation issues raised in the case. The Voller decision confirmed that Facebook page operators were liable as ‘publishers’ for defamatory third-party comments left on their social media posts. However, the defence […]
Following the recent decision in Goodwin, the Supreme Court of NSW has handed down another decision that considers the scope of the duty arising under the DBPA and to whom it is owed. In Pafburn, the court established the duty is prima facie owed by those who are able to control how the construction work […]
On 19 May 2022, the Supreme Court of NSW handed down the first substantive decision on the application of the statutory duty of care introduced by Part 4 of the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 (NSW) in June 2020. The effect of this judgment is that, arguably, the statutory duty of care extends to […]
The ABCB has issued an Implementation Report and model guidance documents that address most of the recommendations contained in the 2018 Building Confidence Report. These developments are the latest in an ongoing effort to address building defects and failures Australia-wide. While significant consumer and industry benefits associated with consistent adoption of the model guidance have […]
Health Care Complaints Commission v Kolos [2022] NSWCATOD 46 The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) recently heard a complaint against a medical practitioner, which involved – among other things – allegations of inappropriate and excessive billing practices in breach of specific conditions on the practitioner’s registration. This case provides a timely reminder to all […]
At the heart of a typical product liability policy is the embedded concept that the policy responds to injury to tangible property and its consequences. However, recent UK claims have tested whether product liability indemnity extends to damages for loss of profit arising from the loss of contracts. In this update, W+K product liability specialist […]
On 22 June 2022, Australia’s world-first mandatory button battery safety standards come into effect, ending the 18-month transition period. Product liability insurers need to ensure their customers will comply with the new regime as failure to do so may result in legal action, penalties and recalls. In this update, W+K Product Liability specialists Trent O’Neill […]
Wotton Kearney is pleased to have 29 senior lawyers featured in the 2023 edition of Best Lawyers Australia and New Zealand released this week. We received 46 listings in total across a range of insurance law, litigation and industry specific categories. Recognition in Best Lawyers is based on peer review and feedback from leading lawyers […]
The past year in the construction industry has been punctuated by a collection of legislative reforms, pandemic responses and technology advances. It’s also been a challenging time in which the industry has been dealing with the continued fallout from market-shaping events, such as the Lacrosse and Grenfell Tower fires, and heightened rates of insolvency. Against […]
