Our goal is to help people in the best way possible. this is a basic principle in every case and cause for success. contact us today for a free consultation.
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Trusting a professional is a completely reasonable thing to do — a lawyer to handle your matter properly, a doctor to pick up what was there to find, a financial adviser to put your money somewhere it belonged, an accountant to get the numbers right.
When that trust is broken, and the consequences have landed on you, it is disorienting. It’s not just the financial hit. It’s the realisation that the person who was supposed to protect your interests didn’t do their job.
Fair Go Australia acts exclusively for people in that position. Professional negligence claims are all we do — and we handle them on a no-win, no-fee basis. You don’t need to come in. You don’t need to pay anything upfront. You just need to tell us what happened.
Professional negligence occurs when a qualified professional fails to meet the standard of care reasonably expected of a competent person in their field, and that failure causes you real, measurable loss — financial, physical, or otherwise. It is not about a bad outcome alone. It is about a failure to do the job to the standard the law requires.
The North Shore has one of the highest concentrations of professional service providers in the country — and when something goes wrong, there’s usually a clear question to answer about whether it should have.
The North Shore — stretching from St Leonards and Chatswood in the lower north through to Pymble, Gordon, and Turramurra along the Pacific Highway corridor — is home to a dense network of lawyers, medical specialists, wealth managers, financial advisers, accountants, and property professionals.
That concentration means the claims we see from this area are varied: a conveyancing error in Neutral Bay, a wealth management failure affecting a retiree in Mosman, a specialist who missed something significant at a Chatswood practice, or an accountant whose advice triggered an ATO audit for a business in North Sydney.
The suburb doesn’t change the legal framework — the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) applies regardless of where on the North Shore the professional was based. What matters is whether there was a duty of care, a breach of that duty, and a loss that followed directly from it. We assess each of those elements as part of every free case evaluation, and we do it entirely remotely — no appointment, no travel required.
We don’t practise general law. Every matter that comes to us is a professional negligence claim — it’s the only area of law we work in. Here are the claim types we handle most often for North Shore clients.
This is not an exhaustive list. If a licensed professional caused your loss, a free case evaluation will confirm whether there’s a claim worth pursuing — regardless of whether that profession appears above.
The primary legislation governing professional negligence claims in NSW is the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW). In plain terms, it sets out how the standard of care is assessed, how liability is determined, and how damages are calculated. It is the framework within which almost every professional negligence claim in this state is run.
For claims against legal professionals specifically, the Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW) imposes additional obligations — a separate layer of conduct requirements that can be relevant both to the civil claim and to any regulatory complaint that runs alongside it.
The Law Society of NSW and the Legal Services Commissioner are responsible for regulating legal professionals in this state. If your claim involves a lawyer, it may be worth considering whether a formal complaint is appropriate alongside — or instead of — civil proceedings. We can advise on that as part of a case evaluation.
Under the Limitation Act 1969 (NSW), professional negligence claims must generally be commenced within 3 years from the date you became aware — or reasonably should have become aware — of the negligence. There is also a longstop period of 12 years from the date of the negligent act itself.
That sounds like a long time. It rarely is. The investigation, expert opinion, and pre-litigation correspondence required before a claim is ready to file all take time. Waiting too long can make a valid claim impossible to run — not because it wasn’t meritorious, but because the deadline passed.
If you are unsure when your limitation period started running, that is part of what we assess in the initial case evaluation. Do not assume you have time. Get advice now.
Professional negligence is the only area of law we practise. That means every lawyer at Fair Go Australia works exclusively in this field — no conveyancing matters, no other practice areas. Just professional negligence claims, handled with the depth of focus that specialist practice makes possible.
Tell us what happened. We’ll review your situation, give you an honest assessment of whether you may have a claim, and explain your options
— at no cost and with no obligation.
We respond to all enquiries within 1 business day.
Yes — and the majority of claims settle before any court proceedings become necessary. Once we’ve investigated and obtained expert opinion, the typical pathway is a formal letter of demand to the professional (or their insurer), followed by negotiation. Many matters resolve at that stage. If litigation does become necessary, proceedings would be filed in the Supreme Court of NSW in Sydney CBD. But reaching that point is the exception, not the rule.
Generally, 3 years from the date you became aware — or should reasonably have become aware — of the negligence. This is set by the Limitation Act 1969 (NSW). There is also a 12-year longstop from the date of the negligent act. If you are uncertain when your period started running, the safest step is to get advice immediately. A missed limitation period can permanently extinguish your right to claim, even where the negligence is clear.
No. The initial case evaluation is completely free and carries no obligation to proceed. There is no upfront cost at any stage, and no fee of any kind unless your claim succeeds. The no-win, no-fee model applies from the very first conversation.
This doesn’t necessarily affect your ability to claim. Licensed professionals in Australia are required to hold professional indemnity insurance, and that cover typically includes run-off provisions — meaning it continues to respond to claims after the professional has retired or closed their practice. The specific position varies depending on the profession and the circumstances, but it is rarely a reason not to seek advice. We can assess this as part of a case evaluation.
Our goal is to help people in the best way possible. this is a basic principle in every case and cause for success. contact us today for a free consultation.
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