Tasmania

At the AGM of the Tasmania division the following people were elected to the committee for 2015:

President - Steven Smith, Hunt & Hunt
Treasurer - Paul Driessen, Willis Australia
Immediate past president - David Farmer, D Farmer loss adjuster
Committee - Steve Knight, Robert Webster and Damon Symes, M&K Dobson, Mitchell & Allport; Sally Kendall, GIO; Luke Taylor, Bridget Wall and Kate Stockford, Page Seager; Lionel Banks, Willis Australia; and Peter Forbes-Smith, Hunt & Hunt.

Western Australia

Following the WA AGM in December, the 2015 committee is:

President: Susan Courthope, Allianz
Secretary: Anton Vucak, Jarman McKenna
Treasurer: Alex Lustig, Jackson McDonald
Education committee head: Joel Sheldrick, Sparke Helmore
National board member: Melanie Flatman, Willis Australia
Committee: Justine Siavelis, Gilchrist Connell; Joyce Blair, Next Health Group; Craig Stewart, CGU; John-Paul Wilson, WHL Legal; Angie Geminis, SRB Legal; Stephen Williams, Kott Gunning; Tim Searle, Clyde & Co; John Ortin and Rebecca Yain, QBE; and Rosena Defreitas and Rebecca Roberts, Jarman McKenna
National board delegate: Roger Sands, Sparke Helmore
Secretariat: Brian Moore

Save the date May 22, 2015

The WA committee is proud to support Insurance Gangnam Style (Reloaded), a full day insurance law masterclass presented by the universities of Western Australia and Southampton and supported by the University of Exeter. Now in its third year, after successful runs in Perth in 2013 and Melbourne in 2014, Gangnam is back in Perth with national and international speakers of the highest calibre speaking on insurance topics.

Gangnam will be opened by Justice Ken Martin. Topics include: Fraudulent devices; Section 54 of the ICA; Supply and service contracts: Conflicts of interest for lawyers, indemnity clauses, scope of cover and principals’ extensions.

The full program and registration details will be available soon.

New South Wales

Another year and more great seminars are lined up for NSW.

March 5: Spotlight on the Lloyd’s market in Australia – A Lloyd’s underwriter’s perspective
Speakers: Mark Lawrence, Chaucer’s casualty practice head, and Cain Jackson, partner, Wotton & Kearney
Chair: David Kearney, partner, Wotton & Kearney

March 10: Insurance law developments in the UK

Professor Robert Merkin, QC, University of Exeter, and special counsel, DLA Piper, has agreed to speak to members on recent insurance law developments in the United Kingdom. He will provide an update on topics currently raising important legal issues around Europe, including trends in liability, legislation and law reform.

March 17: Attack of the drones (in association with ALAANZ)
Speakers:
Simon Hooper, underwriter at QBE Aviation, discussing unmanned aircraft systems, risk v reward; John Van de Poll, Holman Webb, discussing liability issues; Alec Christie, partner at DLA Piper, discussing privacy issues; and Jim Coyne, UAS International (ex-CASA), discussing a regulator’s perspective

It will be an interesting seminar examining many current issues facing use of drones plus a live demonstration of an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Twilight series
AILA NSW is in the final planning stages for the Twilight Seminar Series. It starts on June 10 and continues until August 19. Speakers include Terry Mehigan, SC; Justice Allsop; Prof Michael Legge, University of NSW; and ASIC deputy chair Peter Kell. The seminar brochure will be circulated soon.

AILA NSW is also planning a seminar examining the construction industry and will host the annual Geoff Masel Memorial Lecture, presented by Ian Enright, from RGA Reinsurance Co of Australia Ltd.

NSW is always looking for suggestions for topics for our seminars so if you have anything that you would like to see presented, please feel free to contact me so that we can consider it.

For further information relating to any seminars including registration brochures, please check the NSW events page on our website.

Victoria

The Victorian chapter’s AGM was scheduled for February 25, as this issue of Resolve was in production.

Richard Adamczyk, from AIG, was expected to be returned as chair and David Abell, from ANZ, as treasurer. The rest of the committee was likely to remain static. Simon Wilson QC was scheduled to speak at the meeting.

The Victorian chapter is hosting an ethics seminar in mid-March on expert witnesses. Speakers are barrister John Simpson; Unisearch’s Danny Gompes; and Wotton + Kearney Melbourne managing partner Andrew Sieter. Sparke Helmore is the event host. Check the AILA website for the date.

On April 23, Victoria will host a seminar on the ramifications of New Zealand’s Bridgecorp decision. Speakers are Clayton Utz partner Fred Hawke and AIG’s Jeremy Scott-Mackenzie.

Victoria is pleased to see the Ron Shorter Memorial Award expanded to include young professionals in this state. For more information, see AILA President Susan Vidler’s column in this issue.

The Victorian chapter is proud to host the 2015 national conference on October 14-16 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, 123 Collins St, Melbourne.

This five-star hotel offers luxury accommodation in the heart of Melbourne's CBD, close to retail outlets, theatres, restaurants, Treasury Gardens and the Yarra River.

The theme is A Sporting Chance and the conference will reflect the fact that Melbourne is viewed by many (particularly Victorians) as the sporting capital of the nation. Many high-profile speakers from the sporting world and the legal and insurance fraternities have been invited.

There will be more details in the next issue of Resolve and on the AILA website soon.