New firm opens its doors
A group of ex-Piper Alderman lawyers started their new firm today (4 October).The Adelaide based workers compensation firm, KJK Legal, is the result of a strategic decision by national firm
A group of ex-Piper Alderman lawyers started their new firm today (4 October).
The Adelaide based workers compensation firm, KJK Legal, is the result of a strategic decision by national firm Piper Alderman to drop its workers compensation practice in favour of a focus on dispute resolution, corporate law, employment relations and property and projects.
KJK Legal will be headed by former Piper Alderman partners Tracey Kerrigan, Mark Keam and Neville John. Supporting KJK Legal's directors will be John Hiatt and Carmel Preece, who will be available as consultants.
The firm will provide advice to employers in relation to individual employee's claims, employer obligations regarding employment of injured workers and the provision of suitable duties to those injured workers. They will also advise on the broader rights and obligations that employers have in relation to injury prevention and injury management.
Upon announcing the new firm in June, Piper Alderman managing partner Tony Phelps told Lawyers Weekly that KJK Legal reflects Piper Alderman's strategy to concentrate on a "corporate/commercial practice with high-end litigation".
"It's incompatible to have a state-based workers compensation group at the same time. We're heading in different directions," he said, adding that the workers compensation group had been under pressure for a long time.
"The group itself has gradually reduced in terms of number of partners and number of lawyers in the area over the years and it just got to the point where it was no longer viable within a big organisation like us."
KJK Legal will be located at 157 Grenfell Street, Adelaide.