AILA Conference - Perth 2011
The 2011 Australian Insurance Law Association (AILA) Conference was held in Perth at the Hyatt Regency between 19-21 October. Talbot Olivier was a silver sponsor of the event and Principal, Roger Sands the Covenor. The conference was boasted by over 200 delegates and high profile speakers from the insurance, medical and legal professions.
The theme of the conference was 'The Pendulum Swings' and the programme kicked off with a talk by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Western Australia, The Honorable Wayne Martin. CJ Martin presented a paper on The Civil Liability Acts: Impact and Effect which, using the metaphor of the pendulum, discussed recent developments in the area attributed to the enactment of the various Civil Liability Acts in a number of Australian jurisdictions, developments in the common law and a combination of both. This was followed by Professor Robert Merkin, University of Southampton who discussed recent developments in the UK concerning civil liabilities and the way that Courts are dealing with such issues especially in relation to mesothelima cases and the liability of insureds. The afternoon ended with a welcome reception for delegates at the Royal Perth Yacht Club.
The second day started with The Honorable Robert French, Chief Justice High Court and his paper on Torts & Statutes - A challenging Interaction. His Honour discussed the relationship between torts and statutes including statutory interpretation; the creation and abolition of torts and creation of common law. Orthopaedic Surgeon, Mr Michael Alexeeff presented a paper on Orthopaedic Surgery in the New Millennium - What Works, What Doesn't? including the pros and cons of cervical decompression and disc replacement surgery; vertebroplasty; lumbar disc replacement; hip and knee arthroplasty and replacements. The morning was concluded by Mr Geoffrey Watson SC and Mr John Gordon on recent developments concerning causation and recent cases such as Amaca v Ellis and Lithgow City Council v Jackson. Delegates were treated to a sit down lunch with guest speak David Wirrapanda talking about his life and the importance of having a vision and persistence.
The afternoon session concentrated on insurance implications of catastrophic events including flood, fire and earthquake. Chris Rodd, CGU Insurance talked about insurance ramifications of climate change. Greg Smith discussed catastrophic risk and health and occupational safety issues in the context of an oil disaster which led to a panel discussions by representatives of the various insurance law communities on how best to deal with a catastrophic event. The panel was presided over by Judge Philip McCann. Delegates later attended a forrnal dinner at Kings Park Function Centre.
The final day of the conference saw talks by Peter Quinlan SC on consent and the doctor/patient relationship (Rogers v Whitaker) and Phillipa Nash, MDA National. Clint Hampson, Forensic Pathways provided an insight into insurance fraud and Greg Pynt, Pynt and Partners gave a historic background on an insurer's obligation of pre-contractual disclosure. The conference was wrapped up by Michael Gill, International President of The International Insurance Law Association (AIDA) and was appropriately finished with a sit down lunch "A Taste of WA". The event was a huge success and most of the papers presented by the speakers are available. Please contact any of our insurance team for further information about the event.
