Get to know Thomas Cavanagh, new partner and financial services specialist

What made you decide to become a lawyer? Other than the usual desire to argue a point with everyone and shows like Boston Legal (aged very poorly, I know), I like the fact that the law is not actually made up of rigid principles but rather can be moulded to suit particular circumstances, and that’s […]

The IT professionals claims landscape in 2023

Claims against IT professionals following cyber events continue to be on the rise. Businesses including managed services providers (MSPs) and cloud services providers (CSPs) that are responsible for hosting data on behalf of their clients continue to be common targets for cyber criminals. While MSPs and CSPs are not always the direct victims of a […]

Recent NSWCA decision highlights cost of IT liability risk

Renown Corporation Pty Ltd v SEMF Pty Ltd [2022] NSWCA 233 A recent NSW Court of Appeal (NSWCA) decision, Renown, highlights the potential for IT providers that breach supply and installation contracts – and their insurers – to end up paying out higher damages awards. Notably, the NSWCA found that the proper measure of damages […]

Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report – Issue 4, December 2022

We are delighted to publish Issue 4 of our Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report, which is our final wrap-up of relevant news for insurers, brokers and their customers doing business in Australia and New Zealand in the cyber, tech and data fields for the year. In this month’s report, we look at a range […]

Navigating the high cost of data breaches in the new cyber legal landscape

Recent major cyber incidents and associated data breaches in Australia, particularly those involving Optus and Medibank, have triggered a maelstrom of breach, policy and legislative developments. The Australian Government has taken swift legislative action to increase the consequences of data breaches by amending the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), and has indicated there will be an […]

Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report – Issue 3, September 2022

In this month’s issue of Wotton + Kearney’s Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report, we provide a wrap-up of cyber, tech and data risk news for insurers, brokers and their customers doing business in Australia and New Zealand. We also share some relevant articles from our Legalign Global partners around the world. In this issue, […]

Ten ways IT professionals can avoid the blame game after a cyber breach

Australia is suffering from a ransomware epidemic and IT providers are increasingly being affected by both platform/supply chain and direct attacks. IT providers (in particular managed services providers) are an attractive target for direct attacks, given the potential knock-on impact to their clients and a likely increased motivation to pay the ransom. These attacks are […]

Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report – Issue 2, August 2022

We are delighted to publish the second issue of Wotton + Kearney’s Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report – our regular wrap-up of relevant news for insurers, brokers and their customers doing business in Australia and New Zealand in the cyber, tech and data fields. In this issue, we look at cyber issues, including the […]

Where will the RI Advice proceedings take us?

On 5 May 2022, the Federal Court delivered its penalty judgment in the RI Advice proceedings, which were commenced by ASIC for alleged breaches of its obligations as a financial services licensee under section 912A of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) following numerous cyber incidents. The Court made declarations of contraventions and ordered RI Advice […]

Cyber, Tech and Data Risk Report – Issue 1, July 2022

In light of the frequent and ever-evolving risks and trends in the cyber, tech and data fields, Wotton + Kearney is producing a regular wrap-up of relevant news for insurers, brokers and their customers doing business in Australia and New Zealand in these fields. In this inaugural report, we look at recent OAIC activity, the […]