Our team understands the complexity and interoperability of the financial institutions marketplace and has vast experience advising many leading retail banks and financial institutions and their insurers. Our team also provides advice and assistance to some of the largest national networks of financial advisers, mortgage and insurance intermediaries, investment managers and trustees.
We have assisted our insured clients and their insurers navigate the frequent scrutiny of their investment decisions, advice and compliance obligations through ASIC investigations and prosecutions, enforceable undertakings and fulsome remediation programs. We also advise and assist our clients in relation to a number of class actions against them concerning investment strategies focussing on managed investment schemes and CFD investments.
Advising on strategic issues, policy wordings, coverage, claims management and mitigating future risks is the core of our offering. We also assist our insured clients with investigations and enquiries by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
We commonly act for and advise clients in relation to claims against them both in the Courts and through the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
Recent work
Acting for RBS Morgans in a class action commenced against it, the directors of QRXPharma and QRXPharma’s lawyers, regarding alleged misleading and deceptive conduct concerning capital raisings which raised more than $80 million. RBS Morgans was the lead manager and underwriter of the capital raising.
Acting for one of the primary comprehensive professional indemnity insurers of one of the “big four” banks on a $300+ million claim for indemnity, involving several complex coverage issues across several policy years. Its resolution involves the insurance market working collectively.
Acting for the primary and excess PI insurers of several financial planning groups across multiple years of litigation defending declinatures for hundreds of claims relating to the collapse of the Astarra Strategic Fund. The settlement of the declinatures involved a novel structure incorporating a deed of company arrangement to overcome the limitations imposed by section 6 of the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act.
Representing a financial advisor in New Zealand against all aspects relating to advice on an endowment policy which did not perform as expected. The claim was resolved at an early stage.