Full Profile
With more than 20 years’ experience in insurance law, Jacinta specialises in the defence of all classes of liability including complex product liability and product recall matters, catastrophic public and property liability matters as well as personal injury and professional indemnity matters.
Jacinta represents national and international insurers, insureds, and large corporate self-insureds. She holds panel appointments with national and international insurers, regularly providing indemnity advice on all classes of liability policies.
Jacinta provides both coverage advice and defends high value silicosis/psychiatric injury claims against manufacturers/suppliers of engineered stone and psychiatric claims allegedly arising out of open mine cutting activities on behalf of mine operators. Her product liability experience also includes representing product manufacturers/suppliers of a range of consumer and industrial products at Inquests and Royal Commissions.
Jacinta acts for a number of global self-insured companies in the defence of claims including product liability matters relating to economic loss and catastrophic personal injury. She has significant expertise in product recall matters and the unique coverage and reputational issues which arise in this space. She has particular experience in product recalls involving industrial equipment, the automotive industry and consumer products.
Jacinta also specialises in property liability matters defending breach of contract and negligence claims. She has considerable experience in the defence of claims relating to fire, both accidental and arson.
She was a member of the Queensland branch executive committee of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance for a number of years and the Queensland president of Women in Insurance for six years.
Jacinta has tutored at both the Queensland University and Queensland University of Technology upon invitation from those universities. She is admitted to practice both in Queensland and New South Wales.
Jacinta has been recognised as a leading Insurance Lawyer and leading Product Liability Lawyer by The Best Lawyers in Australia 2021. She was also named a recommended Queensland Public & Product Liability (Defendant) lawyer and Professional Indemnity (Defendant) lawyer in Doyle's Guide 2020 rankings.
Experience
- Product recall – Managing the Australian segment of the global recall of industrial equipment
- Product recall – Advising on an Australian wide recall of office equipment
- Product liability – Successful defence of a 24 party multi-million dollar silicosis/psychiatric injury claim against a host employer
- Product liability – Defending multiple multi-million dollar silicosis/psychiatric injury claims against engineered stone manufacturers and suppliers
- Product liability – Successful defence of an AUD 9 million product liability claim arising as a result of a fire against the supplier of motor homes
- Product liability – Successful defence of an AUD 3.5 million product liability claim against the manufacturer of machinery in use on a mine site
- Product liability – Successful defence of Supreme Court of Queensland personal injury proceedings involving a claim against the manufacturer of a quad motorbike
- Coronial enquiries – Representing the interests of an international product liability insurer and insured in relation to the issues arising from the insured’s product and the death of a contractor on a mine site
- Royal commissions – Advising and representing an insurer and insured as necessary in relation to both the coronial enquiries and subsequent royal commission into deaths arising from the Australian Federal Government Home Insulation Scheme
- Enforcement of indemnities – Resolving numerous matters for insurers and insureds arising out of injuries to contractors on construction sites and business premises through enforcement of contractual indemnities
- Property liability – Providing advice to an insurer regarding prospects of recovery relating to AUD 40 million losses as a result of the Brisbane floods of 2011
- Property liability – Defending economic loss claims against principal contractors arising out of alleged breaches of contract and negligence
- Personal injury – Resolving several personal injury liability matters for insureds and insurers without contributions by relying upon effective ‘other insurances’ clauses
- Personal injury – Successful early, pre-court resolution of a claim relating to the catastrophic injury to a contractor on a construction site
