Connect with meEdward is a member of WK’s Property Major Loss team and has been practising in contentious and non-contentious insurance law since 2008, with a particular focus on property and construction risks.
He advises major Australian insurers, coverholders, the London market and construction clients on disputes and litigation, coverage, subrogated recoveries, and claims strategy across all insurance business lines. He also acts for a wide variety of construction professionals, including D&C contractors, architects, engineers, environmental consultants, and private certifiers, and advises on large property damage disputes and matters involving product liability.
With his deep knowledge of insurance and property and construction law issues, Edward is appreciated for providing commercial and pragmatic advice in the context of industry-specific considerations. For many, he is the go-to lawyer for mega-losses and other large-scale litigation in the property and construction sectors.
Before joining Wotton Kearney, Edward worked at Lendlease, an Australian tier 1 D&C contractor, as its in-house senior legal counsel working to resolve large infrastructure disputes. He has acted in several significant Federal Court of Australia, NSW Supreme Court and New Zealand High Court proceedings.
In 2018, before moving in-house, Insurance Business Australia recognised Edward as a Young Gun of the insurance industry.
- Advising the D&C joint venture on various dispute and insurance claims arising out of the $3 billion NorthConnex tunnel.
- Advising AXA on claims under an insured’s global programme following a dispute arising out of a gold mine in the Philippines. The claims concerned professional indemnity and product liability insurance policies.
- Advising Lendlease Corporation and project managing NSW Supreme Court litigation arising out of the sale of Lendlease’s engineering business to Acciona.
- Advising insurers on a $70 million insurance programme for a pipeline in the Surat Basin of southern Queensland regarding approximately 6,500 defective welds.
- Advising the Abigroup and Leightons D&C joint venture on Queensland Supreme Court litigation, which Project Co commenced alleging various defects and other claims arising out of the Gateway Upgrade Project.
- Acted for professional indemnity insurers of an international law firm opposing injunctive proceedings commenced by a former construction client.
- Advising the D&C contractor on various alleged defects and consequential insurance claims regarding the $800 million Peninsula Link freeway.
- Acted for second excess professional indemnity insurers in the first Australian judgment on technology assisted review (regarding discovery) where the proceedings and the associated arbitration generated approximately four million documents.
- Successfully defending an Australian electrical engineering consultancy in Supreme Court of New South Wales proceedings involving allegations of breach of contract, negligence and misleading and deceptive conduct.
- Successfully defending the Australian entity of an international engineering consultancy in the NSW Supreme Court arising from a residential development in Double Bay, Sydney.
- Construction and Infrastructure
- Professional Liability
- Property – Major Loss
- Subrogated Recoveries
- Construction and Infrastructure
- Energy, Mining and Power
- Industrial and Commercial Property
- Manufacturing and Consumer Goods
- Professions and Business Services
- Public Sector and Education
- Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
- Law Society of NSW