Lawyering
Specialist IP and Business Lawyer
Lawyering Since 2005
I have been lawyering since January 2005. I spent my first few years working in litigation, insolvency, debt recovery and conveyancing then decided property was a good fit for someone who loves checklists and files where the parties are moving towards a common goal. In 2008, the GFC hit which meant property work dried up and we saw a lot of redundancies. What better time to diversify!? Almost by accident I found myself advising business owners on their broader legal requirements (particularly franchises, management rights businesses and starts ups) and dealing with trade mark issues, which I really enjoyed.

Over the years I have honed my knowledge and skills in business and intellectual property law and made some great connections in the regional startup ecosystem.
In 2013, when I was on leave with my first daughter, I decided it would be a good idea to enrol in a Graduate Certificate in Intellectual Property Law through UTS. Two weeks after my final exam, I had my second daughter. That period was absolutely nuts, but it gave me extra knowledge, an extra qualification and meant I could be registered as a trade marks attorney in Australia and New Zealand. To my delight, my registration certificate is pink!
I now spend a lot of time and energy helping clients, writing articles (including one published in the Australian Journal of Intellectual Property Law) and blogs and speaking at events about all things business and intellectual property law. It really is my passion. As an extension of that, in 2017 I co-founded FNQ Angels with Shaun Donaldson of Halpin Partners. FNQ Angels is an angel investment group aimed at connecting local start ups with local capital as well as expertise and mentoring. We had our first successful capital raise in early 2018. Look out Shark Tank!
In 2020 I became a Commercialisation Facilitator for Accelerating Commercialisation which is part of the Federal Government’s Entrepreneurs Program.