Lawcovernotes March 2020

7. The demands of running a legal practice, and its associated risks, can sometimes seem endless, particularly for those who wish to practice actively while shouldering leadership and management responsibilities. However, there are options that can help manage risk and limit liability exposure. Lawcover’s new Lawyers Management Liability insurance will provide peace of mind by offsetting potential risk while you concentrate on your clients and the fundamentals of legal practice. Do you need this type of cover? Consider the following scenarios. Public Liability A new client attends your legal practice to give instructions for the preparation of a Power of Attorney. On entering the reception area, the client catches his foot on the corner of a heavy rug and falls, sustaining significant injuries to his head and right shoulder. He also breaks the laptop he was carrying. The client subsequently commences proceedings against the legal practice alleging that the rug was not evenly placed on the floor of the reception area and constituted a hidden danger. He claims damages for personal injury and damage to the laptop. Internal Crime You have employed a new office manager at your legal practice. Over an extended period, the office manager creates fraudulent third-party disbursement invoices addressed to the legal practice for work allegedly undertaken on its instructions. The office manager then electronically transfers funds from the practice bank account to a third-party bank account by way of “payment” of the fraudulent invoices. Over the course of several months you have become increasingly concerned as to the quality of work being performed by of one of your paralegals, who is inattentive and often fails to attend work in a timely and consistent manner. The firm terminates the paralegal’s employment. The paralegal makes a claim for unfair dismissal in the Fair Work Commission alleging that the firm has breached the provisions of the Workplace Relations legislation in that inadequate warnings were given as to her performance and conduct prior to her dismissal. Statutory Liability You are part of an incorporated legal practice that operates in every State and Territory and is engaged in representing a significant number of commercial and banking clients in relation to the Banking Royal Commission. When assisting clients involved in the Royal Commission, the legal practice requires several of its employed solicitors to work extremely long hours, without breaks, and without weekends or other days off. After a period of time several employees allege that, because of its work practices, the legal practice is in breach of the Occupational Health and Safety legislation and National Workplace Relations legislation in several States and Territories. The legal practice is investigated by the Fair Work Commissioner and notifies Lawcover. These scenarios are just a few examples of what can go wrong in the everyday running of a legal practice. The reality is, there are endless ways in which you could be exposed to risk and it makes good business sense to have proper coverage. Lawyers Management liability is sometimes overlooked. It shouldn’t be. This year, Lawcover will be offering a new, optional Lawyers Management Liability insurance which will align closely with your Professional Indemnity Insurance policy to provide your legal practice with comprehensive protection For further information, click here to download our brochure. Management liability cover is sometimes overlooked. It shouldn’t be.