Lachlan Goddard

Associate

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Lachlan Goddard is an Associate in the Cayman Islands Litigation & Restructuring practice.

Lachlan has acted for corporations, financial institutions and governments in a range of complex, high-value disputes. Key matters include a class action in the Federal Court of Australia brought on behalf of approximately 35,000 group members, and a significant cross-border dispute raising questions of jurisdiction and the international sale of goods.

A large component of his practice is fraud response and asset recovery: obtaining urgent injunctive relief to trace and preserve misappropriated assets before they disappear.

He has a particular specialisation in disputes involving cryptocurrencies and digital assets. He is the author of “Freezing Orders, Proprietary Injunctions and Crypto Assets: A Discussion of Common Issues in the Australian Context” (2024) 11 Journal of Civil Litigation and Practice 127, which maps established interim relief principles onto crypto asset fraud and misappropriation. Prior to moving to Cayman, Lachlan worked for a leading Australian law firm.

Jurisdiction

Cayman Islands

Experience

Acted for a government department in a class action commenced in the Federal Court of Australia. This was a significant proceeding in terms of both scale and public interest, with an estimated class size of 35,000 people, and a claim period of 17 years.
Acted for a Singaporean defendant in relation to allegations of fraud arising from the collapse of a significant cryptocurrency company.
Acted for a manufacturer in a cross-border dispute with an Italian supplier seeking damages of approximately AUD$5 million arising from damage to goods that appeared to have occurred either during manufacture or shipping.
Acted for an accounting firm in relation to the misappropriation of approximately AUD$3 million of client funds by an employee. These funds were converted by the employee into various crypto assets (including Ethereum and NFTs) and gambled.
Acted for a corporate landlord in litigation arising from the landlord’s property manager granting two separate leases over the same portion of a CBD office building, causing potential damages in excess of $AUD24 million.
Appeared as counsel in the District Court of South Australia in a successful application for the grant of a Mareva order over all assets owned by the respondent to the sum of approximately AUD$200,000. Then successfully argued an application for judgment in default of compliance with Court orders under r 146.1 of the Uniform Civil Rules 2020 (SA).