I've been on the other side of this.
I've spent twenty years in law, sixteen of them in family law - as a lawyer, a mediator, an academic. The last five and a half were at the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, first as a Judicial Registrar, then as Senior Judicial Registrar.
I saw what happens when families can't resolve things themselves. Litigation in the Court can have a lasting and adverse effect on families. The financial cost, while significant, is second to the relational and emotional cost. Children can feel caught in the middle of conflict, which can extend for years in the court.
Most families who ended up appearing before me didn't need to be there. They just needed a different kind of conversation - earlier, calmer, with someone who could help them see a way through.
That's what I do now.
Skills and Experience
The Early Years
I started as a family lawyer in Toowoomba, representing clients through separation, parenting disputes, property settlements, domestic and family violence litigation, and care and protection matters.
It's where I learned what the days after separation actually feel like, and the urgency people carry into them.
Teaching & Mediation
I moved into academia, teaching law first at the University of Southern Queensland and then at QUT, training the next generation of lawyers.
During that time I completed my Master of Laws and my Graduate Diploma in Family Dispute Resolution, and became a Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner at Relationships Australia — helping people, just like you, navigate life after separation, or life with ongoing conflict.
The Court
In August 2020, I was appointed to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia, as a Judicial Registrar and later as Director of Indigenous Family Liaison Officer Practice and Support. I also served on the Reconciliation Action Plan Committee and the Access to Justice Committee.
I was appointed as a Senior Judicial Registrar in April 2024 and consistently held the highest settlement rate of the Court-based dispute resolution. While in this role, I also managed a docket of up to 270 matters.
Private Practice
Now I bring all of it together - the knowledge of the application of the law, the years of mediation experience, the Court perspective, and empathy - directly to families and their lawyers.
No matter the type of conflict, the complexity, the dynamics or the circumstances - I can provide a process that is balanced, respectful and resolution-focused.
Credentials & Qualifications
Qualifications
- Master of Laws (QUT)
- Graduate Diploma of Family Dispute Resolution (QUT)
- Graduate Diploma of Legal Practise (College of Law)
- Bachelor of Laws (UNE)
- Bachelor of Arts (Political Science and Sociology) (UNE)
Accreditations and Credentials
- Advanced Accredited Mediator (AMDRAS)
- Advanced Accredited Mediator (Resolution Institute)
- Accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (FDRP)
- Elder Mediation Accreditation (EMIN), in progress
- Accredited Ally (Evolve Communities)
- Admitted as a Solicitor, High Court of Australia (2006)
- Admitted as a Solicitor, Supreme Court of Queensland (2006)
Professional Memberships
- Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators (AIFLAM)
- Resolution Institute
- Queensland Law Society
- Family Law Section, Law Council of Australia
- Family Law Practitioners Association (FLPA)
- Family Law Pathways Network (FLPN)
- Therapeutic Family Law Professionals (TFLP)
- Elder Mediation Australasian Network (EMAN)
- Elder Mediation International Network (EMIN)
