Industry icon shows heart is just as important as mind in the field of insurance law

Profile: Dallas Booth AM, AILA 2024 Life Membership Award recipient
by Resolve Editor Deb Eccleston

Dallas Booth has had an extraordinary career since being admitted to the Bar in 1980.

He proudly admits that was the first and only time he’s ever donned a court wig and gown, with his first appointment as Senior Advisor to the New South Wales Attorney General shaping his career trajectory.

“My interest is more in the design and operation of the law for the benefit of the community,” he said.

At the time, there were significant challenges in the areas of Compulsory Third Party (CTP) and Workers Compensation, and a change in NSW Government led to the reform of the CTP benefit structure and its privatisation.

Dallas developed the legislation for both and gained a deep understanding of “the importance of insurance to society and the importance of insurance law” especially when looking at third-party beneficiaries.

“That’s where you need the insurance process to be operating efficiently,” he said.

It was then he joined AILA, an organisation he views as being a crucially important conduit between the law and insurance sectors.

“I think the role of AILA is to look at what's happening in the law, whether it's case law or whether it's statute law, understand the potential impact of those developments as they're occurring and then explain those developments in lay terms to the insurance industry,” Dallas said.

“Explain it very clearly and, if necessary, alert the world to the fact that that doesn't make sense.”

Career highlights

Dallas knows all too well CTP insurance often doesn’t make sense, particularly in Australia.

When CTP was privatised in NSW, Dallas was appointed Deputy CEO – then CEO – of the Motor Accidents Authority of NSW, a regulatory body established to monitor the scheme.

“Poached” by the Insurance Council of Australia in 1998, Dallas gained an even broader insight into how CTP played out across the country.

“I thought it was fascinating that there were so many different structures to CTP across the states – it was interesting and odd,” he said.

“Everyone who owns a motor vehicle pays CTP – one would hope the processes work for the benefit of everybody and that’s not the case.”

If Dallas’ foray into the world of CTP wasn’t challenging enough, his next step into the role of CEO with the Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund left colleagues wondering “if he’d gone mad”. For Dallas, he was simply continuing to help people when they needed it most, which he believes is at the crux of the insurance industry.

“I believe insurance is an economic good because through the premium process, the contributions of many pays for the losses of the few,” he said.

“And as long as that that's process is working properly, it actually provides strong support and security for the community.”

Community champion

Working with the Motor Accidents Authority of NSW, Dallas saw firsthand the devastating impact of motor vehicle crashes and became a passionate advocate for people with disabilities, throwing his support behind Wheelchair Sports NSW.

Dallas’ commitment to helping the organisation was recognised earlier this year when he was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2024 Australia Day Honours List.

“I just try to be generally helpful in different ways, providing financial support, moral support and arranging contacts in the insurance industry,” he said.

“Just promoting who they are, what they do and the benefit they provide to people with disabilities, particularly people in wheelchairs due primarily to spinal cord injury.”

Life in “retirement”

Since finishing full-time work in 2021, after a decade as Chief Executive of the National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA), Dallas hasn’t slowed down. He’s involved with the ICA, AFCA and is Chair of the Rotary International Zone 8 Regional Council, which was established to create a regional governance framework covering Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands, Papua New Guinea and East Timor.

Dallas and wife Lynne recently celebrated their 46th wedding anniversary and spend what “spare” time they have with their five grandchildren, cycling and cruising the high seas.

Dallas was awarded the AILA 2024 Life Membership Award in recognition of his exceptional contributions to the Association and the broader insurance industry. The accolade is reserved for individuals who have made significant and lasting impacts with AILA and the field of insurance law.