Take this unique opportunity to listen to each other. Gain knowledge and insights while indulging yourself by attending this enlightening session with some extraordinary women who will share their wisdom and experiences. Discover the obstacles and challenges they have encountered and be inspired by their careers. Explore how to navigate your own career and the hurdles that life can throw at you. Aspire to be at the top of your game.

Presenters

Susan McNeil, Barrister, Alfred Lutwyche Chambers
Susan McNeil was called to the Bar in 2007 and has a commercial practice, with a particular interest in building and construction disputes. Susan was named as one of Queensland's leading construction and infrastructure counsel by Doyle's Guide to the Australian Legal Profession in 2017 to 2021, and as one Australia's recommended construction and infrastructure junior counsel in 2018 to 2021. Susan also practices in general commercial disputes, property law disputes, body corporate and insurance litigation. Susan regularly appears in all state courts at all levels. Susan is a Member of the Alfred Lutwyche Chambers. Susan was the President of the Women Lawyers Association of Queensland Inc (WLAQ) between 2009 to 2011. She served as a committee member of the WLAQ for some 10 years between 2003 and 2013. Susan was the Vice President of the Australian Women Lawyers between 2013 and 2014, serving as a Board Member for some 4 years. Susan is presently the President of the Building Dispute Practitioners Society of Queensland (Qld Chapter), having served on the committee since 2013.


Catherine Cheek, Special Counsel, Kennedy Spanner Lawyers
Catherine Cheek is dedicated to assisting people through some of the most difficult times of their lives by providing understanding and empathetic legal representation. Her goal is to make her clients feel supported throughout litigation, to stand up for those who are suffering and to achieve the best outcome possible. She takes great pride in achieving fair outcomes for her clients and ensuring that all individuals have access to justice and excellent quality legal representation. Since being admitted in 1991, Catherine has actively campaigned for the individual’s rights, particularly in the medical law and elder abuse areas, and been involved in a number of significant and difficult cases. She is also a strong supporter of her local community and was actively involved through her volunteer work at the Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic for 10 years.


Kiri Parr, Director, Kiri Parr Pty Ltd
With a background in the construction industry, Kiri Parr consults to organisations about navigating complex situations, including how to approach the delivery of major projects and manage large litigation. Kiri’s skills combine strategy, governance, legal systems and human behaviour. Kiri is a regular public speaker, a Senior Fellow at the University of Melbourne law school lecturing in major projects and is actively involved in the construction industry, including at present as co-vice chair of the FIDIC Contracts Committee. Kiri was a member of the QLS Ethics Committee for 6 years and on the board of Consult Australia, the industry body for consultants in the built environment for 6 years, of which she was President from 2017 to 2019. Kiri spent more than 20 years’ as a construction lawyer, both in private practice as well as 15 years as General Counsel, and was involved in many large projects in the region including Airport Link, Gold Coast Light Rail and Marina Bay Sands. From 2015 to 2019 Kiri was included in Doyle’s Leading In-House Construction Lawyers in Australia.


Janelle Kerrisk, Co-Founder and CEO, Helix Legal
Janelle is a specialist construction lawyer, a savvy business woman and a legal disruptor. She is passionate about women embracing leadership and blazing a trail down the path of their choosing. Janelle spent 6 years as a partner in a national law firm where she was the youngest appointment ever to partner and the first female partner for the Brisbane office back in 2010. She left equity partnership in September 2016 to establish Helix Legal, a new breed of legal business exclusively servicing the construction industry. Janelle has grown Helix across Brisbane, Townsville and Cairns and is always on the lookout for new talent to join the ranks! In its first year of operation Helix Legal was awarded a position on the LexisNexis and Janders Dean Legal Innovation Index and more recently in 2021, Helix Legal won the Lawyer’s Weekly Women in Law Award for Innovator of the Year. In 2018 Helix Legal was listed in Anthill Magazine's Top 100 Coolest Companies in Australia and was a finalist for the Lawyers Weekly Australian Law Awards for the NewLaw Firm of the Year Award. Janelle was the 2017 winner of the National Association of Women in Construction Achievement as a Business Woman Award, a runner up in the Greater Brisbane Woman in Business of the Year Award and a finalist in the Lawyers Weekly Women in the Law Executive of the Year Award.


Kelli Martin, Managing Partner, KLM Solicitors
Kelli Martin is a talented and respected solicitor, business leader and social justice advocate. She has worked predominantly in family and criminal law after being admitted as a legal practitioner to the Supreme Court of Queensland and High Court of Australia in 2008. Kelli founded KLM Solicitors in 2015 with a vision for a contemporary, client-focused law firm. She is also a member of the not-for-profit Red Rose Foundation and actively works to end domestic and family violence. Kelli and her team regularly undertake community legal work, including Legal Aid. In 2020 she was named Partner of the Year – SME at Lawyers Weekly’s Women in Law Awards and also won the ‘Business Achiever’ Award in the Greater Brisbane Women in Business Awards. Outside of her enormously rewarding and busy work life, Kelli raises her two young children.


Kim Cavallaro, Lawyer, Executive Director, Company Secretary, Collaborator for Businesses for People and Planet
Kim Cavallaro has over 20 years’ experience in corporate/ commercial law, contracts and governance mostly in the resources, energy and infrastructure sectors. At this moment in time as we face immense challenges such climate change, increasing inequality and societal polarisation, Kim is on a journey to find ways to align her professional goals with personal values, and assist businesses to “do well by doing good”. Kim undertakes contract legal work (currently for a major Australian resources company) and is an advisory board member to ARTEH, a UQ Ventures start-up developing a digital platform to help companies track emissions, importantly against science-based targets. Kim was the Regional Head of Legal/ Company Secretary for an international consulting engineering firm for 15 years, and prior to that she worked in corporate M&A for major law firms in Australia, Hong Kong and the US. In 2020, as executive director and Chief Commercial Officer, Kim left law to lead the corporate transformation of a listed junior mining company (which is currently Australia’s only primary tungsten producer). She has recently been certified carbon literate by The Carbon Literacy Project facilitated by UQ, and has completed the Harvard Business course in Sustainable Business Strategy. Kim is a graduate of the AICD, qualified company secretary and holds Bachelor of Law (Hons)/ Arts from University of Queensland (UQ).


Bronwyn Eynon-Lewis, Founder, Lacuna Legal
After a false start as a high school music teacher, Bronwyn Eynon-Lewis studied law externally and part-time while also working full-time to complete her Articles of Clerkship. She is a non-practising lawyer admitted in Queensland and New York. In 2005 Bronwyn was expecting her first child so transitioned to a business development and marketing role. Two more children followed and throughout that time she also held management roles in large international and national law firms both in Asia and Australia. Leaving her corporate role in 2017, Bronwyn worked as an executive coach before launching Lacuna with Allison Warburton in 2019. Tired of seeing great lawyers leaving the law to manage different seasons of their life, Lacuna provides lawyers with specialist business development, marketing, administration, management and coaching support no matter how lawyers work so they can retain and build their expertise, relationships and currency. In 2021, Lacuna was awarded the Innovator of the Year (Company) at the Australian Law Awards from a group of high-calibre finalists including Aptum Legal, Balance Family Law, Clayton Utz, Gilbert + Tobin, Hall & Wilcox, Herbert Smith Freehills, K&L Gates, McCabes and Sprintlaw.


Suzy Cairney, Principal, Macpherson Kelley
Suzy Cairney is a projects and commercial lawyer with particular experience in project development and operational contracts in the ports, civil construction and resources sectors. She has experience both in Australia and overseas, and has advised government clients, principals, developers, contractors and operators on a wide range of major infrastructure projects. Suzy has previously worked in-house as a European Counsel for an international port operator in Belgium, as Corporate Counsel for a Queensland water GOC and as in-house counsel to support the feasibility stage of a major new coal project for one of Australia's largest miners. Known for her practical common sense approach and commerciality, Suzy understands the drivers behind getting the deal done.


Allison Warburton, Founder, Lacuna Legal
Allison Warburton is a senior legal practitioner, experienced company director and leading expert in energy policy. Allison has forged a rich and varied career in the law, spending 18 years as a partner with Minter Ellison, a big 6 Australian law firm, before moving into the public policy arena and co-founding a start-up business in the legal support services sector. As a senior partner in a large law firm, Allison saw first-hand how challenging it had become for lawyers to successfully manage their legal careers. The commitments in their working lives made it very difficult for lawyers to be involved with their families and to participate in their broader communities. Allison established Lacuna Legal Providers with Bronwyn EynonLewis in 2019 to provide lawyers with another option - a way for lawyers to continue a rewarding and satisfying legal career as well as enjoying their lives outside of the law. In addition to co-founding Lacuna Legal, Allison is on the Council of Kings College, University of Queensland. She is a Commissioner at the Australian Energy Market Commission, the rulemaking and advisory body for the Australian national energy markets. In 2016, she was one of five independent expert panel members appointed by the Queensland Government to conduct an inquiry to guide the development of a renewable energy strategy for Queensland. She also served as a non-executive director for energy company Stanwell Corporation Limited, from 2016 to 2018. In 2021, Allison was recognised as a finalist for Executive of the Year at the Women in Law Awards. Lacuna was awarded the Innovator of the Year (Company) Award at the Australian Law Awards in December 2021.