Emma Lawrence

Partner

Canberra, Australia

Emma specialises in class actions and large scale commercial litigation, royal commissions & public inquiries, and regulatory investigations. She advises on a range of commercial and contractual disputes, risk management issues and alternative dispute resolution across industries and jurisdictions.

Emma has a deep understanding of the unique challenges associated with complex dispute resolution matters, having experience in acting for the Commonwealth, large corporate clients, and financial institutions. She has strong expertise in large scale project management, frequently managing multi-disciplinary teams across jurisdictions to deliver consistent, commercially focused and practical solutions for her clients.

Emma’s work highlights include:

  • PFAS Class Actions: acting for the Commonwealth in multiple class action proceedings involving Defence facilities.
  • Westpac: acting in relation to the Deceased Estates investigation and proceedings brought by ASIC.
  • Comcover: acting for the Commonwealth in class action proceedings relating to the outbreak of prawn white spot syndrome virus in South East Queensland in 2016.
  • Department of Defence: advising on significant commercial disputes for Defence and resolving these matters in compliance with the Legal Services Directions.
  • Robodebt Royal Commission: advising clients in relation to responding to compulsory notices, appearing at hearings and preparing submissions in relation to potential adverse findings.
  • Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide: Solicitor Assisting the Commission (co-lead), responsible for evidence gathering and hearing preparation and managing a large team across Canberra, Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne.
  • Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements (“Bushfires Royal Commission”): lead member of the Solicitors Assisting team, responsible for evidence gathering and hearing preparation for Australia’s first virtual royal commission. This role required the management of large multijurisdictional teams (in COVID-19 times) and preparation for and delivery of virtual hearings in compressed timeframes.
  • RBS: acting in the £4 billion shareholder class action and the FSA investigation (London).