Joanne has practiced in the area of insurance law and related litigation for over two decades. Joanne is an experienced litigator and negotiator, specialising in the defence of general liability claims including complex personal injury, property damage, professional indemnity and product liability exposures. She has extensive experience acting on behalf of public liability insurers, their insureds and public authorities including telecommunication providers and local councils.
Joanne has dedicated her career to the practice of insurance law. She works closely with insurers to provide advice on indemnity, liability and procedural issues regarding the defence of claims, options for dispute resolution and strategies for both litigated and non-litigated claims. Joanne has acted in matters before the District Court, Supreme Court, Court of Appeal in NSW.
Throughout her career, Joanne has developed strong working relationships with clients, many of whom have worked with her for over a decade. Joanne has completed several secondments within the Australian insurance market where she gained invaluable client experience.
Experience
- Acting for retail owners, managers, cleaners and security in defence of injuries sustained in shopping centres, strata complexes, residential and commercial premises. Examples include:
- Acting for security personnel of a nightclub involving alleged breaches of the licensing laws.
- Acting for owners of shopping centres in relation to slip and fall accidents and defects within the premises.
- Acting for managers of strata complexes in relation to contractual indemnities and claims involving accidents within the premises.
- Claims involving catastrophic injuries sustained due to defects in a residential premises.
- Acting for the owners of a property in relation to injuries sustained whilst using farming equipment.
- Acting for a well known restaurant in relation to alleged food contamination and breaches of Australian Consumer Laws.
- Acting for the owner of a motorcycle race course following a participant’s collision in which he sustained catastrophic injuries.
- Acting for a large bus company in relation to injuries sustained by a passenger.
- Successfully won an appeal to the NSW Court of Appeal in a case involving injuries sustained to a labour hire worker on a rural property
- Acting for developers, head contractors of large construction sites, sub-contractors involving worksite injury claims:
- Acting for owners of a factory involving catastrophic injury of a labour hire worker whilst using machinery.
- Successfully negotiated a claim in which a worker was injured when a concrete beam fell on him whilst at work. This case involved multiple parties and recovery actions.
- Acting for owners of a large truck company involved in a claim against it for injuries sustained in an accident involving the misuse of a crane.
- Advising insurers on a range of professional indemnity and general liability policies.
Memberships
- Law Society of NSW
- Property & Liability Discussion Group