Health Care Update – Issue 11

10 August 2023

Kerri Thomas
Partner
Sparke Helmore Lawyers

Kerri Thomas
Partner
Sparke Helmore Lawyers
t: +61 3 9291 2305

Kerri has over 30 years of litigation experience representing clients in a variety of insurance claims. She is regularly singled out in local and international guides, including Best Lawyers, as being one of the country's leading insurance lawyers. Her areas of focus are professional indemnity, health, aviation and general liability classes of insurance. Kerri leads Sparke Helmore’s national Health team, made up of partners and senior lawyers who have extensive experience in both health and insurance law. Kerri was a finalist for Insurance Partner of the Year in the 2023 Lawyers Weekly Partner of the Year Awards.

Welcome to the eleventh issue of the Health Care Update. In this issue, Partner Mark Doepel and Special Counsel Steven Canton have prepared a national update on Australia’s legal frameworks in relation to health law and medical negligence. Mark and Steven take you through the relevant state and territory laws, legal access, pre-litigation processes, length and settlement of claims, involvement in Government agencies, damages regimes and defences.

They also consider recent trends in litigation and medical negligence around Australia, with a particular focus on medical negligence class actions and the upward trends in medical malpractice awards.

We hope you find this issue informative and useful. If there are any topics you would like us to cover in the future, please contact Kerri Thomas, or alternatively if you have any questions on this update, please contact Mark or Steven.

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