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Team

Kim

McLagan

Principal Lawyer - Head of Workplace Relations
Kim McLagan

A highly experienced and respected employment lawyer, Kim leads the FCW workplace relations team. Acting for both national and local employers across government, education, healthcare, manufacturing, and automotive sectors, she specialises in workers compensation claims and the management of workplace injuries.

Workers compensation claims

Having successfully defended many worker’s compensation claims, Kim is sought out by employers for her depth of expertise across WorkCover matters. Whether she is providing pre-emptive advice in the early stages of a conflict, fighting against an unfair dismissal claim, or advising on the subtleties of WorkCover insurance premiums, Kim crafts legal strategies to prevent, mitigate and defend against even the most challenging of workplace disputes.

Sensitive to the complex human elements which underpin every workplace claim, Kim works closely with HR teams, workplace leaders and work and injury management coordinators to achieve workable early-stage solutions that involve as little time, stress and expense as possible. A strong believer in creating sustainable outcomes, she goes beyond the problem at hand, implementing long term strategies to protect her clients against similar conflicts arising again in the future.

Injuries in the workplace

When an employee sustains an injury which affects their ability to work, the implications for an employer can be nuanced – especially when the original event may occur outside of the workplace. With an in-depth understanding of what is required from a robust fitness for work assessment, Kim helps businesses establish the legal foundations for whatever next steps are required.

Whether she is implementing safeguards to prevent a non-workplace injury from being exacerbated in the course of employment, negotiating support arrangements to allow a worker to continue in their role, or navigating a route towards termination where this is no longer possible, Kim ensures that whatever the circumstances of an injury, her clients’ interests are safeguarded at all times.

Passing on legal tools

Genuinely invested in her clients’ long term success, Kim is not one to approach any workplace challenge in isolation. Known for going above and beyond to educate employers in law, procedure, and the rationale behind her own decision-making processes, she equips clients with the tools to future-proof their businesses as they move onwards and upwards from conflict.

Background
  • Prior to joining FCW Lawyers in 2018, Kim held a number of senior positions at prominent law firms in Melbourne and Ballarat. Kim also authors our quarterly WorkersComp in-Brief series.
Experience
  • Conducting workplace investigations to assist the organisations to resolve issues between employees and/or achieve a respectful departure without recourse, in the event of the misconduct of CEOs and senior managers, and employee complaints
  • Defending a significant volume of compensation claims and having them successfully rejected
  • Advising on complex injury management cases and implementing premium reduction
    strategies
  • Defending general protections and unfair dismissal claims
  • Advising and executing strategies to successfully manage issues, including fitness for work, inherent job requirements, terminations and redundancies
  • Developing effective health assessments, care plans, and return-to-work plans
Qualifications
  • LLB, University of Tasmania

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