Hartley joins Moray & Agnew as a special counsel in Brisbane, bringing with him 12 years' experience in insurance litigation, specialising in medical negligence.

Hartley's areas of expertise include defamation claims against medical professionals, psychiatric issues, drug dependency and neurological impairment in patients, coronial inquests and inquiries, policy coverage and risk management advice.

His experience, which spans the UK and Australia, includes advising the world's first medical defence organisation, the UK's Medical Defence Union. He has also advised the National Health Service Litigation Authority, which is a specialist health authority responsible for handling negligence claims against National Health bodies in England.

In addition, he served for seven years as the honorary company lawyer to Medelect Limited, a provider of medical training in the Middle East, Africa and the United Kingdom.