Brisbane law student Corey Cavanough has received an Australian Insurance Law Association (AILA) student prize for achieving the highest marks in insurance law subjects at Griffith University (GU).
Cavanough, 23, will graduate this year with a Bachelor of Laws/Bachelor of Commerce (Financial Planning) degree.
Aside from winning the AILA student prize, Cavanough has received three GU academic excellence awards. He is also a member of the Griffith Business School's Academic Excellence Society and the Golden Key International Honour Society, which recognises high-performing students.
AILA presents student prizes, each worth $500, to the top students in insurance law subjects at several universities across Australia annually to encourage graduates to seek careers in the insurance industry.
Cavanough said two schoolteachers – one of whom was a lawyer – recognised his potential during legal studies in high school and “nudged” him towards his career path. He said the law was attractive because there were “thousands of different ways to achieve the result a client wants,” as opposed to, say, mathematics, where there was always only one correct answer.
Engagement with AILA will enable Cavanough to continue to benefit from wise mentors.
“I am grateful to AILA for its support for young aspiring insurance lawyers and the opportunities to meet a range of people in the profession and the insurance industry,” he said.
AILA Queensland President Sarah Tuhtan, who presented Cavanough with his prize at the GU Law School's (GULS) annual awards ceremony, said it was “wonderful to see such a bright cohort being recognised for their achievements.”
She also praised GULS Dean Therese Wilson for recognising insurance law as a distinct subject from contracts and torts law, saying: “While both are foundational, they don't really capture the critical role insurance plays in the commercial world.”
Cavanough is currently working part-time at the Brisbane office of insurance law specialist HBA Legal.
Cavanough said: “It's made me realise the many ways that insurance is involved in the claims process,” adding that he enjoys the variety of claims he has been involved with, from a hospital medical negligence case to a supermarket slip and trip.
The double degree has also enabled Cavanough to see insurance from the perspectives of both lawyers and their clients.
In February, AILA awarded two University of Tasmania (UT) law students the AILA student prize for achieving the highest marks in insurance law subjects.
