Chris Wilson’s widow in bid to freeze Netflix co-star Matt Wright’s assets in fatal chopper crash court stoush
Danielle Wilson’s lawyer said he was concerned ‘that if Helibrook is not insured, that ultimately, when it comes to enforcement, if we succeed, we may not be able to enforce against Helibrook’.
Police & Courts
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Lawyers for Chris “Willow” Wilson’s widow have filed an application to join his Netflix co-star Matt Wright to her lawsuit against his company and freeze his assets.
Danielle Wilson is suing the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and Helibrook Pty Ltd in the Federal Court following her husband’s death in a chopper crash in 2022.
On Thursday, her lawyer David Lloyd SC said Ms Wilson was seeking to include Mr Wright due to questions over whether Helibrook’s insurance would cover the two limbs of her claim.
“There’s a concern that if Helibrook is not insured, that ultimately, when it comes to enforcement, if we succeed, we may not be able to enforce against Helibrook,” he said.
Mr Lloyd said he understood Mr Wright’s position to be “that there’s no need for a freezing order because he’s covered under the policy”, which if true would mean “we may not need to pursue it”.
But counsel for Helibrook, Tom Brennan SC, said there did appear to be some aspects of the claim which “would be a basis for the insurer to decline indemnity under the policy”.
“If Mr Wright is to be joined we apprehend he may make a claim for indemnity that may raise further and separate issues for the insurer from those which arise with Helibrook — not least that Helibrook is a named insured and Mr Wright is not,” he said.
Mr Wright’s solicitor Amanda Bond confirmed her client had made a claim and was awaiting a response, but Mr Lloyd acknowledged she was not in a position to respond to his application, which was only filed on Wednesday.
“We had hoped that we might be able to get to a position that there might be an undertaking given by Mr Wright and his wife about not transferring or disposing of assets from now forward, which if given, would remove any urgency from the interlocutory application,” he said.
“The only thing that we may need to seek in the absence of an undertaking by Mr Wright and Mrs Wright is an interim order holding the position.
“That is, preventing the disposal of assets between now and the date that freezing order application, if it’s pursued, can be heard.
“(But) hopefully that might go away if an undertaking to the court was provided.”
Mr Brennan said Helibrook’s insurer could also potentially bring a cross claim for the case to be dismissed on the basis that Mr Wilson had piloted the chopper himself on the day in question.
“The contract is a contract for the carriage for the whole of the morning, so that does squarely raise that question because Mr Wilson was a pilot for part of that flight,” he said.
The case returns to court on Tuesday.
US gov’t ‘immune’ from $7.6m claim over NT defence base BBQ explosion
A young American marine who suffered burns to a third of his body in a barbecue explosion in Darwin will not be given a cent from his own government.
Two Top End men charged with links to Filipino child abuse industry
Two greater Darwin men – one from the northern suburbs, the other from Palmerston – have been charged with involvement in the Philippines’ child abuse industry. One of the men appeared in court on Wednesday.