Law firm Minter Ellison says changes to the Trade Practices Act (TPA) due to the introduction of CLERP 9 (Corporate Law and Economic Reform Program) are an important development for the insurance industry.

Under the TPA a defendant has not been able to claim contributory negligence or contribution from a joint wrongdoer, and such claims have been restricted to common law claims of negligence.

The firm says many claims for what in reality is negligence are made on the basis of misleading and deceptive conduct, in contravention of section 52 of the TPA. “The changes generally should be welcomed by the industry as helping to limit the liability of insureds.”