Global law firm Kennedys has boosted its Sydney branch by welcoming insurance and commercial litigation specialist Alexandra Bartlett (pictured) to the team as a new partner.
Bartlett has more than 15 years of experience in defending claims and advising on coverage. She practices in financial lines, D&O, and professional indemnity. Before joining Kennedys, she served as a director at YPOL.
In her new role, she will work closely with Kennedys' national financial lines team in Sydney, led by managing partner Matt Andrews. She will also work with growing teams in Melbourne and Perth, led by recent lateral partners Emily Schneider and Jonathan Wyatt.
Andrews emphasised that financial lines is core to the firm's insurance expertise. Therefore, Bartlett's appointment enables the firm to build on the work it is already doing with local and international clients.
“In the last five years, our insurance practice has more than doubled in size, and we are pleased to welcome Alex to our growing team,” he said.
Commenting on her appointment, Bartlett said: “I am delighted to join Kennedys today. It is an excellent insurance firm with a strong reputation in the market.
“Insurance is a global industry, and being part of a global firm means that my insurer clients will have access to top-quality international legal resources. Kennedy also has a modern outlook which is exciting – particularly with respect to its technology platforms and promotion of diversity.”
Bartlett's appointment brings the law firm's gender ratio to almost equal, with seven women and eight men making up the firm's 15 partners.
“It is important to me that I'm joining a firm with an almost-equal ratio of male and female partners,” Bartlett said. “Most insurers take their commitments to gender diversity seriously and expect their legal advisers to engage in the genuine promotion of women.”
She joins the firm at a pivotal time as Australia emerges from the COVID-19 lockdown and the insurance industry awaits emerging developments that 2022 will bring.
“It's an interesting time in insurance law; for instance, in the D&O space, everyone will be watching the market disclosure reforms and their impact on securities class actions,” she said. “There have been many predictions from industry experts and in the media; it will be interesting to see how they play out.”
