My primary focus is managing legal risks, facilitating workouts and advising on how to handle distressed counterparties. However, I also help clients manage regulatory and reputational risks, including in the context of commercial litigation, voluntary product recalls, distressed property developments and distressed investment schemes.

I am a regular speaker on issues that affect the financial services and government sectors, including crisis management, ethics and professional responsibility, conduct and culture.

Career highlights

• Legal Practitioners’ Liability Committee – advised on claims against solicitors arising from the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth)
• Victorian Department of Education – helped the department restructure how funding is provided to the vocational training sector
• Victorian Department of Justice – counselled the department on restructuring the Ararat Prison private–public partnership
• Receivers and managers of the Great Southern Group – Assisted with restructuring certain core forestry management investment schemes, and the ultimate sale of a forestry estate to institutional investors for $415 million
• Elders Limited – advised the board in relation to the company’s exit from its forestry managed investment scheme business, including managing conflicts of interest and regulatory and litigation-related risks, attending board meetings and presenting to the Group’s banking syndicate
• ANZ – served as the bank’s primary adviser in relation to the collapse of Opes Prime Stockbroking, which affected approximately 1,200 clients and resulted in outstanding debts to ANZ of more than $700 million. This involved providing guidance on closing out its stock-loan book and acting for ANZ in proceedings brought by Opes Prime clients seeking title to shares that were loaned to the bank
• A privately owned supplier of mining services – acted in a contractual dispute with a distressed junior listed miner that involved more than $20 million in unpaid certified interim payment claims
• The non-executive directors of Harris Scarfe – advised on an insolvent trading claim in which the liquidators claimed more than $140 million from each director, eventually settling the matter on confidential terms

Education
BA HONS, LLB HONS, BCL

• Small business insolvency reforms now in force
  

  Australia's largest corporate insolvency reform in 30 years came into effect at the beginning of 2021. Organisations need to familiarise themselves with the information now in light of an anticipated wave of insolvencies in 2021, as COVID-19 related government incentives cease.

   

• Personal property securities reform package released for consultation
  

  On 22 Sept 2023, the Australian government responded to the Whittaker Review, releasing the Personal Property Securities Amendment Bill 2023 for public consultation until 17 Nov 2023.

• Parliamentary Inquiry recommends comprehensive insolvency review
  

  The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services inquiry into corporate insolvency in Australia tabled its final report to the Australian Parliament on 12 July 2023.

• COVID-19: Use of Holding DOCAs
  

  The economic impacts of COVID-19 are unexpected and significant. While the Australian Government has announced a number of temporary reforms to address these impacts, there remains risk for directors of companies that are unable to pay their debts as and when they are due.

• Insolvency law reforms for small business
  

  What's next for Australian businesses after the temporary COVID-19 insolvency law relief expires at the end of 2020? The government's new announcement sheds light on the next steps.

• Immunity upheld for foreign entities against Australian wind-up
  

  High Court upholds decision that separate entities of foreign states may be immune from being wound up in Australia

• Submissions | 'Clarifying the treatment of trusts under insolvency law'
  

  Our Submissions to Treasury's consultation paper address the questions and issues raised in detail, and raise some complex issues in relation to any proposed law reform in relation to trust insolvency.

• The purchaser's equitable lien in insolvency: recent developments
  

  Two recent cases from New Zealand demonstrate how an equitable lien can arise in insolvency to elevate the interest of unsecured purchasers of goods to secured status.