David Kerwin

Full Profile

David’s expertise encompasses policy coverage and defence of claims across all major insurance lines, particularly financial lines (including Directors & Officers (D&O) liability, management liability and professional indemnity), property (first and third party) and life insurance.

His clients include major Australian and London market insurers, brokers and underwriters as well as multinational and national policy holders / insureds – including SMEs. He also acts for businesses and high net worth individuals in commercial disputes.

Clients appreciate David‘s ‘hands on’ engagement with the matter, technical aptitude and strong communication skills. He adopts a commercial approach and is driven by reaching solutions that work for the matter and the client. David builds teams that support clients across a broad range of legal needs including commercial litigation, mediation and regulatory issues. 

Clients describe David as “easy to work with” and “accessible” and observe that he “provides solutions that work for our business”, “he gets the results we want and is technically correct”, is “on the tools” and “owns my problems.”

Experience

Financial Lines 

• Acting in class action proceedings arising from accusations of professional negligence levied at financial services professionals resulting from failed investment products.
• Acting in a series of cases brought ASIC against directors for breach of statutory and fiduciary duties including directors’ examination proceedings. In these cases, David worked closely with the clients to identify the information sought by ASIC, review the material gathered with a view to protecting privilege, assist with presentation of the materials to ASIC and appear before ASIC at the examination process. 
• Acting for Directors at liquidator’s examination processes including supporting directors on privilege claims, examination and appearance strategy and document management / approach.
• Acting for underwriters in D&O coverage disputes.
• Acting for insureds in defending a range of professional negligence claims against accountants, taxation professionals, stockbrokers, financial planners, architects, engineers and other building professionals

Property 

• Advised and acted on a wide range of London Market and composite insurers’ disputes concerning property and liability losses;
• Defence and settlement of multi-million dollar contractor’s liability claims for fire damage;
• Pursuing a complex subrogated recovery action versus property developer for inadequate fire stopping;
• Conduct of international insurance/reinsurance dispute following property damage and business interruption in beer brewery;

   Life Insurance 

• Providing comprehensive coverage advices to underwriters and insurers concerning policy response in TPD, income protection and life insurance generally.
• Acting for insurers in TPD and income protection insurance recovery actions.
• Acting for insurers in seeking recovery of contributions from co-insurers double insurance payments.