I was born in the UK and moved to New Zealand when I was seven years old. My Kiwi life began here in Whakatāne, where I spent part of my childhood. When I returned for a visit more than 20 years later, Whakatāne still felt like home and I knew it was where I wanted to be again.

I studied law and music at the University of Otago before beginning my legal career at a leading law firm in Levin. I began working across a range of property matters, before finding my specialist area in trust law. Over the past four years, I have worked almost exclusively in trusts, including trust management, variations, gifting, changes of trustees, resettlements, wind ups and complex trust transactions. I have also appeared in the High Court to resolve a range of trust matters.

During my time in Levin, I also worked alongside bankers, surveyors and financial advisers on a community education project, presenting at panel discussions on asset planning and ownership structures in the context of the Ōtaki to North Levin roading project.

I enjoy working with clients in a way that looks beyond the immediate legal issue. Legal issues rarely sit in isolation, and I believe clients are best supported when their lawyer takes the time to understand their wider family, business, property and succession goals. I also strongly believe in a team approach, bringing the right people together so clients receive thoughtful, practical and well-rounded advice.

I’m very glad to be back in the beautiful Bay of Plenty, and I’m looking forward to using my skills to support the Whakatāne community.