Griffin Legal is proud to be a modern and innovative law and consulting firm. We are fully committed to promotion: Lisa is a special counsel at King & Wood Mallesons and was called to the bar in 2004. She works primarily in litigation and dispute resolution and works for the Commonwealth Government as well as private clients in various areas of law. As a mother of three young children, she is strongly committed to gender equality and the benefits of flexible working arrangements. She is passionate about a culture that embraces diversity, equality, flexibility and inclusion. Farzana is a supervising disability lawyer at Canberra Community Law (CCL), where she provides free disability discrimination legislation and related legal aid and community building to support low-income people and other barriers. Previously, she was a Program Manager and Senior Counsel in CCL`s Street Law Program, where she supported homeless people in civil and petty crime cases. Prior to entering the municipal legal sector, Farzana was an in-house lawyer in the Australian Government. Amy was admitted to the ACT Supreme Court in 2017 and spent several years in private practice specializing in providing legal services related to real estate, development and construction, including commercial structuring and private lending and borrowing. Amy is currently Senior Counsel in the Property, Land and Construction team at ACT Government Solicitor, advising on a wide range of commercial real estate and construction matters. In 2018 and 2019, she served on the board of the ACT chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), a non-profit organization that advocates for women in construction and empowers them to reach their full potential.
Tim is a partner at Griffin Legal in the commercial and general advisory practice and was first elected to the Board in 2019. He was accepted into the profession in 2018 as a mature career starter after a previous career as a software developer and IT consultant. Tim is particularly interested in the interaction between technology and the legal industry, and in particular how it relates to legal professional responsibilities. He will bring his technological background and experience in commercial law and corporate governance as Vice-President. Sarah began her legal career in Goondiwindi and was called to the Bar in 1993. She has worked in private practice in Townsville, Sydney and Canberra. In 2017, she became a partner at local company Gabbedy Milson Lee. Looking for change and an opportunity to give back, she accepted the role of Associate Senior Counsel and Head of Family Law Practice at the Women`s Legal Centre in July 2020. She is also an NMAS accredited mediator. She is currently a member of the Society`s Family Law Committee and also mentors young law students through ANU`s Women in Law Mentorship Program. Elizabeth is a founding partner of Redlich Holding`s Canberra office.
She specialises in public and administrative law and has led the legal teams of three Commonwealth agencies. First elected to Council in 2017, she was elected Vice-Chair in 2018 and Chair in 2020. She joined the Law Society`s Government Law Committee in 2018 and received the Law Society`s Government Law Award in 2016. With over twenty years of experience in government and private practice, Elizabeth is representative of the diversity of our local profession and is passionate about the role professional associations play for the benefit of their members and the community at large. Susan Platis is an experienced lawyer with a background in civil and criminal law as well as government consulting. She was a community lawyer at Legal Aid ACT before accepting a secondment as an assisting coroner at the ACT in 2019. In 2020 and 2021, Susan advised the ATT government on criminal law and policy matters. She holds a Master`s degree in Legal Practice and has taught at ANU College of Law. During her fifth term on the Board, Susan is Executive Co-Chair and a member of the Pro Bono Clearing-House Management Committee. Susan is currently Senior Counsel for the Government Counsel Office ACT and enjoys mentoring young lawyers. Amanda Wescombe is a corporate and corporate lawyer specializing in telecommunications, technology and cybersecurity. Since joining in 2006, Amanda has held positions in corporate, government and private practice.
Amanda currently works as a special counsel at lawyerbank and previously held the position of Sales and Procurement Manager for a global company, where she executed a major project for the Ministry of Defense. As an advocate for flexible working and non-traditional legal channels, Amanda is excited about these options, as well as the technological advancements available to lawyers to achieve a sustainable work-life balance. Adam was admitted in 2003 and first practised in Melbourne and London before returning to Canberra in 2011, first as a Special Advisor at Ashurst and since 2014 as a Partner at Mills Oakley. Adam has spent his entire legal career as a real estate lawyer, advising public and private clients on the acquisition, development, sale and rental of real estate. He also assists clients in planning law and honesty. Adam has been featured in Best Lawyers in Australia every year since 2014, Doyle`s Guide every year since 2016 and the Legal 500 Asia Pacific every year since 2017. Adam has been a member of the company`s Property Law Committee for over ten years, including Chair of that committee for the past five years. He was also a member of the Governmental Legal Committee of the ACT Law Society for several years. Mark has been practicing in Canberra since 1984 and has worked in sole proprietorship as well as a partner, director and special advisor in several local companies. In February 2019, Mark co-founded Bedfords Legal, where he works primarily in the areas of small and medium-sized businesses and commercial matters, specialized estate planning and business succession, and general client counselling.
Mark was a board member between 2010 and 2014 before resigning for a few years. He was re-elected to Council in 2018 and elected Treasurer in 2020. Mark has been a member of the Society`s Professional Standards Committee since 2007. In addition to striving to support government, commercial, non-profit and residential clients, supporting our community locally and nationally is of great importance to Griffin Legal. Andrew is a partner at HWL Ebsworth Lawyers and was called to the Bar in June 2005. He is a dispute resolution lawyer and works primarily in common law insurance systems and administrative benefit and review systems. He was named Canberra`s `Lawyer of the Year` for Alternative Dispute Resolution in BestLawyersTM Australia 2022 and Canberra`s `Lawyer of the Year` for his insurance work in 2021. It was also recognized in the same publication for Government Practice (2017-22), Insurance (2019-22) and Dispute Resolution (2020-22).
Andrew is also a registered migration agent and assists businesses and individuals in obtaining Australian visas. Vik Sundar is Managing Director of Clear Law, a law firm specializing in commercial, tax and estate law. He is a leading lawyer specializing in estate planning, SMSF, wealth protection, commercial and tax law. He was called to the Bar in 2010 and has held numerous positions including the public service, in-house and private practice. Prior to joining Clear Law, Vik was the Managing Director of a multi-city law firm. Vik has also held legal and management positions at NAB Private Wealth and the Australian Tax Authority. Catherine is the founding principal of the family law firm Parker Coles Curtis, which began operations in September 2020. Previously, she worked at a national family law firm and also at Legal Aid ACT.
She was called to the Bar in 2010 and received professional certification in Family Law (NSW) in 2015. She is also an independent advocate for children, mentor to ANU and UC law students, and volunteer at the Women`s Legal Centre. Previously, she served on the board from 2013 to 2017, taking time off to have and employ two children who are now 4 and 2 years old. She has been recognized as a leading lawyer in family and divorce law and has been a custodian in the Doyles Guide for several consecutive years. Kevin is the founder of Robinson+McGuinness and has been recognized in the prestigious Doyles Guide for the sixth consecutive year as an outstanding family and divorce lawyer and outstanding parenting, custody and children`s affairs lawyer in the ACT for 2022. Prior to founding Robinson + McGuinness, Kevin worked in all areas of family law in Canberra, as well as guardianship and care and protection matters. Kevin is Chair of the Society`s Family Law Committee, a member of the Canberra Region Family Law Professionals Association, a member of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia and a member of the Independent Children`s Lawyer Panel – ACT Legal Aid. Founded in 2009| | Based in Canberra National Operations Georgia started its career 7 years ago and has worked mainly in criminal law with a law firm in Queanbeyan.