With award-winning teams of litigation and insurance experts, Freehills has gained an outstanding reputation, working on some of the most significant and complex corporate insurance matters occurring in Australia. Our Insurance Solutions team acts for many of the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) 100, directors and officers, major insurers, creditors/financiers and the receivers/administrators.

One of the strengths of our Insurance Solutions team is the broad experience in dispute resolution. If a dispute arises that cannot be resolved through negotiation, mediation or other alternative dispute resolution methods, our partners and lawyers are also well placed to protect clients' interests through the courts.

We act for both corporate insureds as well as the insurance industry.

Corporate insureds

Services include corporate advice and dispute resolution services for major corporations:

• Corporate insurance advice – advice to companies, statutory bodies and corporations in relation to their risk and insurance programs, submission of their claims for indemnity from insurers and drafting of their insurance and legal policies.
• Risk management advice – advice on liability, risk identification, insurance plans, and advice and training for crisis management.
• Corporate insurance and risk solutions for major projects – risk identification, analysis and advice for existing insurance programs, and advice on the potential to transfer risks and liabilities by insurance, financing and alternative risk transfer products.
• Indemnity disputes – advice to companies on indemnity and/or coverage disputes with their insurers, and advice to insurance brokers on professional indemnity insurance and risk management solutions. 
• Commercial litigation – advice on professional indemnity, directors' and officers' liability/insurance, product liability, class actions, business interruption, energy and resources and property and fire damage.
• Alternative dispute resolution.
• Transport – advice and representation to companies in relation to transport and transit claims, including land, rail and shipping disputes, maritime insurance and ship arrests.

Insurance industry

For the insurance industry, we provide commercial advice and dispute resolution services for national and international insurers, reinsurers and brokers. These services include:

• Dispute resolution – advice and representation for our clients, including in the fields of professional indemnity, directors’ and officers’ liability/insurance, product liability, class actions, business interruption and property and fire damage.
• Insurance policies – advice on the drafting, interpretation and conditions of insurance policies, risk management and compliance issues, subrogation, contribution and coordinate liability, the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) and other relevant legislation.
• Liability of insurers – advice on, and act in relation to, determining liability of insurers and subrogated claims.
• Indemnity issues – advice on exclusion clauses, insurance claims and disputes, bad faith, subrogation and coverage disputes with insurers, as well as risk management and dispute resolution solutions and strategies.
• Alternative dispute resolution.
• Insurance industry regulation and compliance – advice on all aspects of the impact of the Financial Services Reform Act 2001 (Cth) (FSRA), including the requirements for licensing, financial services and product disclosure and the regulation of sales and marketing activities. We also provide advice on compliance systems and strategies, Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) inquiries, surveillance activities, and investigations, including potential criminal, civil and administrative actions arising out of breaches of the FSRA or license conditions.

Due to the sensitive nature of many of our matters, below are examples of prior instructions which are a matter of public record.

• Air Services Australia – The regulator of air space in Australia, Air Services Australia, embarked on significant reform of Australian air space at the request of the Commonwealth Government. When Air Services Australia became concerned that it may not have properly implemented its regulatory powers, Freehills was instructed to review and advise on the entire process.
• CSR Limited – We have acted for CSR for more than a decade in major litigation, both in Australia and the United States (where we work with US counsel), for indemnity and damages cover from public and product liability insurers for multiple asbestos injury liability claims made in Australia and the US. The issues concern coverage and antitrust and economic tort causes of action.
• Deloitte – We successfully represented the actuaries from Trowbridge Deloitte in the Jackson (James Hardie) enquiry, as well as related regulatory and other proceedings concerning the asbestos funding crisis.
• Femcare – We acted on behalf of Femcare, the manufacturer of a well known female sterilisation device, and its insurer, in a major representative proceeding in the Federal Court as well as in numerous individual claims.
• Gympie Gold – We acted for the receivers of coal and gold miner Gympie Gold after it went into voluntary administration following a fire which devastated the Southland Hunter Valley coal mine in New South Wales. Our team advised on issues dealing with the extensive insurance claims.
• HIH Insurance Limited – We acted for the underwriters of the directors’ and officers’ liability policy of the HIH Group. The liquidation of the HIH Group, one of Australia’s largest general insurers and reported to be Australia’s largest corporate collapse at over A$5 billion, led to various issues and queries as to the manner in which the insurance and financial services industry is regulated in Australia. We were involved in all aspects of this matter, including the HIH Royal Commission.
• Lend Lease – We acted for Lend Lease in the longest running coronial inquiry in Australia’s history, the Thredbo ski village landslide in New South Wales, which killed 18 people and caused significant economic disruption. Freehills also represented Lend Lease in the various multi-party commercial proceedings in various insurance issues.
• Lloyd’s – We regularly provide advice to the Corporation of Lloyd’s, including advice to Lloyd’s in relation to the alternative dispute resolution clauses contained in their standard policy wordings, to encourage the use of alternative dispute resolution techniques for resolving disputes between corporate insureds and their insurers.
• New South Wales Treasury Corporation – Following the HIH collapse, we acted for the New South Wales Treasury Corporation in connection with issues arising under the state’s compulsory Building Warranty Insurance scheme under Part 6 of the Home Building Act 1989 (NSW).
• Prime Infrastructure – We acted for Prime Infrastructure, the owner of the Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal in Queensland, in the ISR claim which followed the collapse of a reclaiming machine.
• Product contamination / extortion client – We have advised a major corporation through a successfully resolved claim involving tens of millions of dollars for business disruption and product withdrawal arising from criminal extortion and product contamination.
• Promina – We acted for Royal & SunAlliance in the initial public offering (IPO) of Promina, the largest composite insurance company in Australia. We advised on the due diligence conducted on the float company and on the preparation of the prospectus for the IPO.
• Santos – Freehills acted for petroleum producer and explorer Santos following a gas leak and fire at the South Australian Moomba Gas Plant. We provided advice on the insurance claims resulting from business interruption and also advised on commercial claims.
• Swiss Re – We advised on a novel directors’ and officers’ insurance arrangement for global reinsurer Swiss Re. The parties involved in the matter came from around the globe and included a captive reinsurer in Bermuda, insurance brokers in Singapore, parties in London and Melbourne, the client in Sydney and team members from Freehills Sydney and Brisbane.
• United Medical Protection – We acted for the provisional liquidator of United Medical Protection, the largest medical defence organisation in Australia. The case made corporate history because it is the only time a company has been successfully restructured and able to come out of provisional liquidation.
• Victorian State Government – We successfully acted for the Victorian Government and its related state entities following the explosion and fire at Esso’s Longford Gas Plant in September 1998, including representation at the Longford Royal Commission and the related class action. The class action, brought on behalf of users of gas in Victoria against Esso, was the largest in Australian legal history, involving claims between A$300 million and A$1.3 billion.
• Woodside Energy – We advise Woodside Energy in relation to its risk management and insurance programs.

In the wake of significant corporate collapses, the commercial and legal environment both within and beyond Australia has undergone a period of substantial change. Regulators around the world are also playing an increasing role in the insurance industry, escalating the need for compliance. 

For our corporate and insurance clients, this changing and complex environment requires quality legal advice and representation. As a full-service practice, Freehills can review, advise or conduct dispute resolution across a broad spectrum of insurance matters.

Our Insurance Solutions team works with clients to provide commercially-astute solutions both in Australia and overseas.

Legal guides

Freehills has been recognised by the industry for our outstanding work in dispute resolution and commercial litigation:

• Asia-Pacific Legal 500, first tier ranking in Dispute Resolution 2004–2010
• Chambers Global, top tier ranking in Dispute Resolution, 2006–2008
• Best Lawyers International, top tier ranking in Litigation, 2008–2010
• PLC Which Lawyer?, top tier ranking in Dispute Resolution, 2006–2008

Testimonials

‘The team … is praised for its strategic, results-oriented advice.’ Chambers Global 2010

‘They focus on the outcomes to be achieved rather than the process. They don't think one or two steps ahead—their advice is always what will happen three or four steps ahead.’ Chambers Global 2010

The ‘exceptional’ Freehills is a ‘firm of choice’ for clients in major litigation, such as class action defence, providing ‘high levels of service, responsiveness and value.’ Asia-Pacific Legal 500 2010

‘excellent lawyers who always meet deadlines and are universally great to deal with.’ Chambers Global 2009 

‘… one of the country’s “pre-eminent litigation teams” due to its vast resources and wide-ranging experience’, Chambers Global 2008