Fee Langstone

Partner

Philippa Fee is one of New Zealand’s leading litigation and dispute resolution lawyers. She has been named as a Leading Individual for insurance in every Asia Pacific Legal 500 edition since 2017.

Philippa is widely regarded as being a leader in the analysis of complex indemnity issues.  This reputation has grown over the two years.  A significant part of her practice, perhaps up to 50%, involves giving advice to insurers as to whether a claim is covered under a professional indemnity, general liability (including defective workmanship extensions), product liability, D&O and statutory liability policies.

In so far as claim defence work is concerned, her principal specialist area is the representation of professionals in connection with claims for negligence and disciplinary complaints. The parties she routinely assists include lawyers, chartered accountants, engineers, real estate agents, architects and insurance brokers.

Another specialty is advising insurers who have an obligation to advance defence costs under a D&O policy.  In some instances, there may be only limited cover, so the instruction involves monitoring the conduct of the defence, to ensure that the insurer’s rights are property protected and the litigation is handled as efficiently as properly.

Philippa regularly represents insurers and their clients in property damage claims which are covered under public and products liability policies.  Other areas of specialty include construction disputes and this year Philippa has also been providing advice to insurers on whether their business interruption policies cover losses arising from the Covid-19 lockdown.

Philippa is a Member of the Society of Construction Law, the Arbitrators and Mediators Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ), the New Zealand Insurance Law Association (NZILA), and the Australia and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF).

Philippa authored the New Zealand chapter of International Product Liability, a text published by the Centre for International Legal Studies.

LLB (Hons)