Presenters

Elisa de Wit, Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright
Elisa de Wit is a partner based in the Melbourne office and leads the Australian climate change and sustainability practice and the firm's global carbon markets practice. Elisa has practised in the areas of environmental, planning and climate change law for over 30 years, including 8 years of practice in the United Kingdom. Elisa has a detailed understanding of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Scheme (NGERS), the Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI), Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) [now known as the ACCU Scheme], the Renewable Energy Target (RET) and the Safeguard Mechanism and has provided extensive advice to a wide range of clients on the obligations and opportunities which flow from NGERS, CFI, ERF and RET. During her time in the United Kingdom, Elisa advised various clients on the implementation and operation of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme. Elisa's climate change practice also includes advising on climate risk, climate disclosure and climate change-related litigation.


Samuel Allam, Special Counsel, Baker Mackenzie
Sam is a Special Counsel in our Environment and Climate Change practice, based in Sydney. He is known for providing incisive advice to manage environment and climate change issues, especially risks and opportunities most acute to the renewable energy and digital economy transitions. This positions clients to meet regulatory, governance, and shareholder expectations from a whole-of-environment and ESG perspective. Sam has been operating in this field for more than 10 years, in private practice and in-house. This includes working inside one of Australia’s biggest renewable energy companies where he led the Environment Team and reported to the GC and COO. Before joining Baker McKenzie three years ago, Sam was a Senior Associate at a top tier law firm in Sydney. His regular column – the "Whole of Environment Report" – is published by The Fifth Estate (a leading Australian newspaper on the sustainable environment). The column targets the C-suite and leaders in government. It draws on Sam’s day-to-day work and through its conversational style offers rare clarity on subjects like emissions reduction targets, mandatory climate reporting, corporate governance, greenwashing, the voluntary carbon (ACCUs) market, Australia’s new nature repair market, climate change litigation, nuclear energy and offshore wind.  Sam is a guest lecturer on environment law, renewable energy, sustainability and climate change at the University of Melbourne Law School.