Todd is an experienced insurance lawyer with a focus on litigation and coverage. He specialises in property damage, cyber and technology disputes, construction, and professional indemnity.
He regularly acts in proceedings concerning negligence, breach of contract and the Australian Consumer Law. He has particular expertise in coverage issues under the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth).
Todd provides clear and pragmatic advice on technical issues.
His lateral thinking delivers strong, commercial outcomes for clients. He is an effective litigator who quickly identifies the real issues, the relevant evidence and exercises sound judgement.
Todd is always available to take a call and fights hard for a positive outcome in every matter. We recently worked closely together to secure a large settlement on a difficult file for the business.
Recoveries specialist
Australian insurer
Experience
- Acting for an insurer in Federal Court proceedings brought against it by a property developer in liquidation, following the denial of indemnity for $10 million of damage on the basis of non-disclosures and misrepresentations under section 28 of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth).
- Managing litigation which resulted in a 5 day trial and involved extensive expert evidence concerning whether an Australian importer and supplier of white goods owed a duty of care and acted negligently during a product safety recall.
- Acting for multiple plaintiffs in NSW Supreme Court proceedings following fires and water damage, concerning allegations of negligence, nuisance and/or breach of contract.
- Acting for an insured in NSW District Court proceedings and successfully recovering against the manufacturer of an electric blanket following a fire which caused death and destroyed a house.
- Acting for insured in NSW Supreme Court proceedings against a managed service provider following a ransomware attack on its IT system, alleging a breach of contract and negligence and recovering losses exceeding $1 million.
- Acting for insured and non-insured entities responding to third party demands for compensation following cyber incidents.
- Advising insurers on recovery prospects or liability exposure arising from cyber incidents.
- Acting for business owners and recovering losses from a digital application developer it engaged under a contract for services. The losses were recovered pre-litigation and involved allegations of misleading and deceptive conduct.
- Acting for a project manager in Supreme Court of NSW proceedings brought against it by the developer and other construction professionals, alleging a breach of the statutory duty of care imposed by the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 (NSW).
- Acting for a construction company in an arbitration against a Council regarding the failure of soil compaction at a waste depot. Engaged a number of experts across geotechnical engineering and delay damages assessment, resulting in the client obtaining an award of over $1 million and legal costs.
- Providing coverage advice and acting as defence counsel for a range of professionals including accountants, insurance brokers, developers, real estate agents and underground asset locators.
- Providing coverage advice in respect of a claim by a winery on its ISR policy, concerning whether grapes on the vine constitute ‘growing crops’ or formed part of the business ‘stock’.
- Providing more than 50 coverages advice to insurers in relation to claims on home and contents policies.
Memberships
- Member, NSW Claims Discussion Group (Insurance)