About Us
Lawcover provides approved professional indemnity insurance policies to law practices in NSW, ACT and the NT. We also provide professional indemnity insurance to a number of national law firms operating in NSW and other states.
As a wholly owned but independent subsidiary of the Law Society of New South Wales, Lawcover was created to protect and support the legal profession. With our strong capital position and mutual insurer ethos, Lawcover is not subject to pressure from shareholders to raise prices, reduce cover or exit markets when the going gets tough.
What we cover
- Civil liability up to $2 million each and every claim
- We offer Top Up insurance up to $20 million
- Unlimited period Run Off cover for ceased practices/retired solicitors
Our history
History of legal PII in NSW
Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, professional negligence claims against law practices increased, resulting in increasing premiums and lengthy disputes with clients about compensation. The Law Society of NSW (Law Society) received complaints and requests for a solution, not only from the profession, but from representatives of the consumers/clients of legal services.
A PII scheme to insure private practice solicitors was underwritten by HIH Insurance from 1998 through to 2001, when HIH collapsed. That market failure significantly affected the ongoing viability of PII for law practices being placed in the open market.
In 2004, in response to that market failure, the Law Society established Lawcover Insurance Pty Ltd to permanently underwrite the NSW PII scheme arrangement, to ensure consistency in the provision of affordable and sustainable PII to law practices and to protect the consumers of legal services. Lawcover was also charged with providing risk management education in efforts to reduce claims and to improve the risk profiles and outcomes for law practices.
The Law Society also required that Lawcover deliver, at no cost to insured law practices, unlimited period Run Off cover, to provide ongoing protection for ceased law practices and retired solicitors.
1979 1987 1998 2004
Lawcover - established by lawyers for lawyers
For nearly 40 years, Lawcover has operated the PII scheme in NSW, previously under the terms of the Legal Profession Act 1987 (NSW) and subsequently the Legal Profession Act 2004 (NSW) and finally the Legal Profession Uniform Law 2015 (NSW).
Like all other states in Australia, the various legal PII schemes operate through a single provider, usually under the auspices of the local Law Society, ensuring that the collaboration between the peak professional body and the insurer is focused on protecting and supporting the profession, and maintaining the confidence of the consumers of legal services.
Lawcover is proud to have been invited by the Law Societies of NT and ACT to take over the underwriting of their PII schemes in recent years, after the departures of commercial insurers in those jurisdictions.
Our services
In addition to our professional indemnity policy Lawcover provides:
- Responsive and supportive claims service
- Cyber insurance providing emergency response services for cyber attacks and incidents, at no additional cost
- Assistance for risk-prone and/or law practices facing difficulties, to address underlying issues through advisory visits by our Practice Support Services team
- Education for solicitors, administrative support staff and new graduates – through digital and face-to-face workshops – with a proven track record of helping to reduce the frequency and severity of claims
Our premium pricing philosophy
Keeping premiums affordable is our number one business objective.
We understand that every law practice is different and our broad coverage is designed to meet solicitors’ evolving needs. Premiums for law practices are calculated based on a combination of potential risk factors including:
- The amount of work undertaken by using the gross fee income for each insured law practice
- Risk management discounts which are available for eligible risk management certification or participation in Lawcover’s risk management activity
- Individual law practice claims history – where both no-claims and low claims discounts can apply
- Individual law practice claims performance which may attract claims loadings
- The amount of claims excess chosen by the individual law practice, which is payable on claims losses by the law practice and which can attract a premium discount
Sustainable Premium Allocation
If the financial performance of Lawcover’s business is better than anticipated, the benefits are returned to our policyholders as future premium reductions – not as dividends to shareholders. This is one way that we deliver consistently affordable and sustainable insurance protection.