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Western Australia · Specialist Lawyers
When a professional lets you down in Western Australia, the consequences can be severe — and the path forward isn’t always obvious. Whether it was a solicitor who mishandled your matter, a financial advisor who placed you in the wrong investments, or a doctor who missed something that changed your health, you deserve a clear answer about where you stand.
At fga.net.au, professional negligence is all we do. We act exclusively for claimants — on a no-win, no-fee basis — and we work with WA clients across Perth, regional WA, and remote communities via phone and secure video consultation.
✓ No Win No Fee | ✓ Free Case Evaluation | ✓ Confidential | ✓ Australia-Wide Coverage
WA Legal Landscape
Western Australia has a legal framework for professional negligence claims that differs in important ways from other states — particularly around limitation periods. Understanding those differences matters, because missing a deadline in WA doesn’t just slow down your claim. It can end it entirely.
The claims we handle in WA reflect the state’s economic makeup. Perth’s professional services sector generates the full range of negligence claims you’d see elsewhere in Australia. But WA also has a significant volume of engineering and construction negligence arising from the resources and mining industries, as well as property-related claims driven by the state’s active real estate market.
Claims in WA are heard in the Magistrates Court (smaller matters), the District Court of Western Australia (mid-range), and the Supreme Court of Western Australia for significant or complex cases. Where federal law is engaged, proceedings may also be brought in the Federal Court of Australia (Perth registry).
The good news: you don’t need to attend court in person to have a viable claim. Most professional negligence matters in WA resolve before trial, through negotiation with the professional’s insurer.
Know Your Rights
Professional negligence in Western Australia is governed by a specific set of statutes. Getting these right matters — and it’s one of the reasons jurisdiction-specific legal advice is essential.
The primary negligence statute. It governs how courts assess duty of care, breach, and damages for professional negligence claims in WA. Every claim brought in a WA court is assessed against this Act.
Sets your claim deadlines. Six years for general claims; three years for personal injury — both running from the date of discoverability. WA’s general limitation period is longer than most other states.
Governs WA solicitors’ conduct and underpins solicitor negligence claims. Also establishes the Legal Profession Complaints Committee pathway — separate from, and not a substitute for, a civil negligence claim.
Applies nationally including WA. Relevant where a professional’s conduct amounted to misleading or deceptive behaviour, or fell below statutory consumer guarantees. Can run alongside a negligence claim.
Governs how evidence is admitted and how expert reports are treated in WA state court proceedings. Relevant to the instruction and formatting of expert witness reports — a standard part of most negligence claims.
Don’t Wait
6
Years — general claims
For most professional negligence claims — including economic loss, property damage, and financial harm — WA allows six years from the date your loss became discoverable. This is longer than many other Australian states, but the clock still runs.
3
Years — personal injury
Where the negligence caused physical harm — most commonly in medical negligence matters — the limitation period drops to three years from the date of discoverability. The clock starts from when you knew (or reasonably should have known) that a professional was at fault.
⚠ Act before time runs out
In Western Australia, professional negligence claims must generally be commenced within six years of the date the loss was discoverable — or three years for personal injury — under the Limitation Act 2005 (WA). Missing this deadline may permanently extinguish your right to claim. There is also a long-stop provision that can close the window even if you’ve only recently discovered the problem. If you’re unsure whether your time is still open, contact our team for a free assessment as soon as possible.
Our Areas of Practice
We don’t do general practice. Every case that comes through our doors is a professional negligence matter — across the full range of claim types common in Western Australia.
Missed limitation periods, incorrect legal advice, failed conveyancing, botched litigation. When your lawyer’s mistakes cost you a claim, a property, or years of wasted fees.
Missed or delayed diagnoses, surgical complications, failure to warn of material risks, inadequate referrals. WA patients have the same legal rights as those anywhere in Australia.
Incorrect tax advice, audit failures, financial misstatements that triggered ATO scrutiny. If your accountant’s work put you in a position you wouldn’t otherwise be in, that loss may be recoverable.
Unsuitable investment recommendations, fee-for-no-service failures, superannuation advice that didn’t fit your circumstances. WA saw significant financial planning losses in the post-GFC period — your claim may still be open.
WA’s resources sector generates engineering negligence claims at a higher rate than most other states. Design defects, structural failures, and inadequate site inspections — across both the commercial and residential sectors.
Unsuitable loan products, failure to disclose material terms, placement into loans that didn’t match your financial position. Brokers owe you a duty to act in your best interests — when they don’t, there may be a claim.
We Come To You
We assist clients across all of Western Australia — you don’t need to be in Perth, and you don’t need to visit us in person. The majority of our WA work is handled by phone, email, and secure video consultation.
Perth metro and surrounds
PerthFremantleJoondalupRockinghamMandurah
South West and Great Southern
BunburyBusseltonAlbanyMargaret River
Regional and remote WA
If you’re in a regional or remote location — including the Pilbara, the Kimberley, the Goldfields, or the Wheatbelt — we can still help. Distance is not a barrier to making a professional negligence claim, and it’s not a barrier to working with us.
Complaints vs. Claims
A regulatory complaint and a civil negligence claim are separate processes — one doesn’t prevent or replace the other. A successful complaint to the LPCC or AHPRA may result in disciplinary action against the professional. It won’t put money back in your pocket. For financial compensation, you need a civil claim.
Our focus is the civil compensation pathway. We’ll point you in the right direction on the regulatory side where it’s relevant — but civil litigation to recover your loss is what we do.
The Process
Professional negligence law is narrow, specific, and genuinely complex. Every case that comes through our doors is a professional negligence matter — it’s the only area of law we work in.
01
Tell us what happened. We’ll assess whether you have a viable claim, what the limitation position looks like, and what the process would involve. No cost, no obligation, confidential.
02
We build the factual and documentary picture of your claim, then instruct an independent expert in the relevant field to give a formal opinion on whether the standard of care was breached.
03
Most claims resolve through pre-litigation negotiation with the professional’s insurer. If the matter needs to go to court, we run it in the Supreme Court of WA or the Federal Court (Perth registry). Our fee is contingent on success — if the claim doesn’t succeed, you owe us nothing.
If you’ve been let down by a professional in Western Australia and you’re not sure whether you have a claim, the best first step is a conversation. Our free case evaluation covers your situation, your limitation position, and what the process looks like from here. Confidential. No obligation. We respond within one business day.
Common Questions
In Western Australia, the Limitation Act 2005 (WA) gives you six years from the date your loss was discoverable for most professional negligence claims — or three years for personal injury claims. The clock starts from when you knew (or reasonably should have known) that a professional’s failure caused your loss, not necessarily from the date the error occurred. There is also a long-stop absolute limitation provision that can close your claim even if you only recently discovered the problem. If you’re unsure whether your time is still open, the safest course is to get advice now rather than wait.
Yes. Solicitor negligence is one of the most common professional negligence claim types in Western Australia. If your lawyer missed a limitation period, gave you incorrect advice, mishandled your funds, or failed to progress your matter competently — and you suffered a financial loss as a result — you may have a claim. The fact that your lawyer is themselves a legal professional doesn’t make the process more complicated. The standard of care expected of WA solicitors is well understood, and so is how courts assess breaches of it.
The Civil Liability Act 2002 (WA) is the primary legislation governing negligence claims in Western Australia, including professional negligence. It sets out how courts assess whether a duty of care existed, whether it was breached, how causation is established, and how damages are calculated. Understanding how this Act applies to your specific situation is part of what we assess in a free case evaluation — there’s no need to work through it yourself before calling us.
No. We work with clients across all of Western Australia — including Bunbury, Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Broome, Karratha, Port Hedland, and remote and regional communities throughout the Pilbara, the Kimberley, and the Goldfields. All consultations can be conducted by phone or secure video call. Documents can be shared digitally. There’s no requirement to visit any office in person at any stage of the process.
Any licensed professional who owed you a duty of care and whose failure caused you measurable loss. In practice, the most common claims in WA involve solicitors, doctors, accountants, financial advisors, engineers, architects, and mortgage brokers. WA’s resources sector also generates engineering and environmental consultant negligence claims at a higher rate than most other states. If you’re uncertain whether your situation involves a professional who can be held legally accountable, our free case evaluation will give you a clear, honest answer.
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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