UK-based firm DWF has bolstered its Australian presence with the hire of a nine-partner insurance litigation team from national firm Hall & Wilcox, as the firm rebuilds its Australian bench following a major scaling back of its legal advisory services there in 2021. 

The group is led by partners Matt Curll and Rachael Arnold and represents Hall & Wilcox’s entire London markets team. Most of the team will join DWF in Sydney with colleagues also based in Brisbane, Newcastle and Melbourne, the firm said in a statement.

DWF, which provides integrated legal and business services, has around 2,000 people in its global insurance services division and brought in revenue of £435m in the year ended 30 April 2024. 

Its hire of the Hall & Wilcox team follows the firm completing its acquisition of Australian claims management business Proclaim in September as part of its push to boost its presence in the country.   

“It has long been a strategic priority to grow our business organically in key markets such as Australia, including through senior lateral hire recruitment,” said Matthew Doughty, chief executive officer of DWF’s insurance services division. 

He added the incoming team would “significantly strengthen our ability to support clients across Australia and globally”. 

The group will significantly boost DWF’s lawyer headcount in Australia, where the firm currently has around 25 lawyers, according to its website. 

DWF first launched in Australia in 2017 as part of a wider global expansion effort and initially grew rapidly across the country. However three years ago the firm announced the closure of its legal advisory operations in Melbourne, Sydney and Newcastle, in what it described at the time as an “earnings enhancing” move that would enable it to focus on institutional clients and core sectors, such as insurance. The closure was expected to lead to the loss of around 100 jobs, including 14 principal lawyers, or partners. 

The incoming group also includes Paul Baxter, Hannah Peddie, Zoe Keith, Clare Campbell, Gemma Dehn, Tina Lung and Ahranee Vijayaseelan, all of whom were partners at Hall & Wilcox. 

Jon Broome, managing director of Proclaim, said: “We, and a number of our clients, know the team well and this presents an opportunity for us to deliver a more integrated service in the future across the whole claims lifecycle, whilst at the same time respecting clients’ preferences as to outside counsel and their existing panel arrangements.” 

The team is expected to join DWF by May 2025 at the latest.