Summit speakers

Annie Haggar is the founder and principal of Cyber GC, a law firm dedicated to supporting Australian businesses and government in cybersecurity preparedness, defense, and recovery. With a multi-award-winning background, she's been recognised as General Counsel of the Year (Australian Law Awards - Lawyers Weekly - 2021), Technology, Media, and Telecommunications Lawyer of the Year (Corporate Counsel Awards - Lawyers Weekly - 2021), and Australian In-House Counsel of the Year (Australasian Law Awards 2021). Annie brings 6 years of experience as global legal counsel for Accenture Security, and has 20+ years of expertise in technology and law, advising on global issues for corporate and government entities. Cyber GC has a collaboration with Redacted Information Security – MRGD, providing cybersecurity advice and support for M&A.

Bianca Lau is the General Counsel at Youi Insurance, a challenger brand in the general insurance market that was founded in 2008. Bianca joined Youi in 2019 following a decade-long stint in-house in Banking, having started her career at Allens Linklaters in the Banking and Finance Team.

At Youi, Bianca oversees the legal team as well as Youi’s regulatory affairs and internal investigations functions. Her enthusiasm for in-house legal technology and innovation has resulted in the successful implementation of solutions that empower her team to seamlessly navigate Youi's remarkable growth.

Under Bianca's guidance, the Youi legal team has achieved plenty of recognition, including the in-house insurance team of the year award at the Australasian Law Awards in 2022 and the insurance in-house team of the year title at the Lawyer's Weekly Corporate Counsel Awards in 2023.

Brenton Steenkamp heads the Cybersecurity services team within the Forensic & Technology practice of the Firm. He brings more than two decades of experience in coordinating incident response, cyber breach and related internal investigations, including assisting stakeholders in regulatory defence across Australia and globally. Brenton advises clients on various cybersecurity matters including the response and investigation of cyber and data breaches, insider threats, regulatory compliance and stakeholder management. Bringing together multi-disciplinary local and global teams he has led and assisted clients on complex international cybercrime, response and remediation investigations across Europe, United States, Australia and Africa.

Calli Tsipidis is Legal Counsel at Foxtel Group, working across the FOX SPORTS Australia, Kayo Sports, BINGE, Flash and Foxtel brands. She advises the sports content and production, sales, partnerships, digital product and marketing teams, and was a key stakeholder supporting the build and launch of BINGE, Flash, Kayo Freebies and Pay-Per-View on Kayo. In both 2022 and 2023, Calli was named ‘Sports and Entertainment Lawyer of the Year’ at the Lawyers Weekly Corporate Counsel Awards, and in 2021, Calli was named ‘Rising Star of the Year – In House’ and ‘In House Lawyer of the Year’ at the Women in Law Awards. Calli also sits on the Board of the Communications and Media Law Association and is a member of the Australia and New Zealand Sports Law Association.

Chloe is a legal counsel specialising in the funds, superannuation and financial services industry. With experience providing legal, risk and compliance support to Australian financial services companies, Chloe also brings company secretarial experience across various board committees, including due diligence, audit, risk and compliance. Chloe is a commercially minded lawyer who advises on risk mitigation, regulatory obligations and implementing good corporate governance practices. Her background in a complex and heavily regulated industry enables to foster cross-functional collaboration among business units, offering strategic advice to boards, executive teams, regulators, auditors and consumers alike. In 2023 Chloe was named a finalist in the Australian Law Awards In-House Lawyer of the Year. Chloe is passionate about increasing awareness of alternative career paths in law and the number of women in finance.

Liz is an award-winning workplace relations lawyer bringing knowledge, experience and passion to her work.
 
With a track record of delivering strong client-focused results, Liz’s drive and dynamism make her sought-after as an HR business partner and legal advisor to major corporations. Her talent is turning workforce challenges into opportunities for positive cultural change, increased productivity and advancement of business goals.
 
Liz was previously a partner at a national mid-tier law firm. She has held a range of executive and board positions for professional associations, including with Victorian Women Lawyers and the Law Institute of Victoria’s Workplace Relations Executive Committee.
 
In 2015, Liz was named Young Gun of the Year at the Australian Women in Law Awards. In 2018, she was recognised by the Australian Financial Review as the youngest partner appointed among participating Australian law firms. In 2021, Liz was named a Finalist as Partner of the Year (3 Years of Less) and Partner – Workplace Relations in the Australian Law Awards.
 
Liz regularly speaks at professional conferences and events - headlining alongside business, political and government leaders like Lord Mayor Sally Capp, Lee Lin Chin and Commissioner Kate Jenkins - as well as featuring in major news publications like the Australian Financial Review and The Australian.

Emilie is an experienced commercial lawyer who has worked in both private sector and in-house roles. Emilie is currently the Senior Legal Counsel at Modaxo and Trapeze Group Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa. Trapeze Group is a leader in public transport technology that enables authorities and operators to deliver connected, sustainable, and equitable services for their passengers.  Trapeze Group is part of a global collective of technology companies called Modaxo that are passionate about changing the face of people transport.  
 
Emilie has provided legal advice across a range of sectors including Government, resources, transport and software, supporting both government and private sector clients.
 
Emilie was named the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Lawyer of the Year Award 2023 for the Lawyers Weekly and named a finalist for the QLS In-house Counsel Awards 2023. Emilie is also a Director for P&C QLD (Board of Directors (pandcsqld.com.au)) and a member of the Australian Association of Corporate Counsel Pro bono committee (About | Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC)). In her spare time, Emilie is also the Papua New Guinea (PNG) Female Champion Angler for 2023, tagging seven marlin in 2 days at the PNG National Fishing Tiles in Lae 2023.

Greg Dickason leads LexisNexis’ businesses in Asia and the Pacific.

Greg brings to LexisNexis 25 years of professional experience in general management, technology development and product management. Prior to joining LexisNexis, Greg was the Chief Technology Officer and Head of Product & Solutions at CoreLogic and has previously held senior positions at Virgin Mobile UK and Unisys. Greg holds a Master of Engineering degree from the University of Cape Town, South Africa; and an MBA from the University of Southern Queensland, Australia.

Greg is also a contributor to the Australian Financial Review and other industry news websites. He is passionate about thinking outside the box and adopting new technologies to help customers succeed.

Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. He is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of the Minds Count Foundation.

Katherine Stapels is a legal professional with extensive experience in the defence industry. Katherine is the Director of Legal & Contracts for Thales, has served as the General Counsel for DroneShield Limited and was a key player at CEA Technologies, where she had a crucial role in legal and regulatory affairs.

In 2022, Katherine was the recipient of the Lawyers Weekly Defence Lawyer of the Year Award, a finalist for General Counsel of the Year in both the Australian Law Awards and the

Women in Law Awards, and a finalist for Legal/Contracting Professional of the Year in the Women in Defence Awards.

Katrin O’Sullivan has over twenty years’ experience in the development and humanitarian sectors and is currently the General Counsel for The Fred Hollows Foundation. The Foundation currently operates blindness prevention programs in over 25 countries employing 400 staff and has annual revenue of over $100 million. Katrin advises The Foundation on its global operations, including ground-breaking initiatives such as international social impact investment and development impact bond projects.

Katrin holds an LL.B (Hons) from the University of Sydney, an LL.M from the University College London and has undertaken further post graduate studies at Harvard Business School. She has previously worked for the German Foreign Offices, with postings to Berlin and Geneva, and as a diplomat at the UN, with postings to Geneva, New York, Dubai, Afghanistan and Indonesia. At the UN, she established and led the legal department for the Middle East, Africa, Asia and acted as the Director for the office in Indonesia post-tsunami, where she was responsible for coordinating international disaster relief projects.

Katrin was awarded “Not for Profit Lawyer of the Year” in 2023 by the Association of Corporate of Corporate Counsel as well as by LawyersWeekly in 2019 and was named in “The Most Powerful Women in Australia” list in 2015 and is part of the ACNC consultation panel.

Mel is the Senior Legal Counsel at Megaport Limited, a global technology company founded in Brisbane and now in the ASX200. She has worked in house for eight years across multiple industries such as aviation, infrastructure, financial services and now, cloud computing. In August 2023, Mel was awarded the  prestigious In House Counsel of the Year Award at the Queensland Law Society Excellence in Law Awards. Mel has previously been awarded the Lawyers Weekly Corporate Counsel 30 Under 30 Award and the Global Modern Counsel 35 Under 35 Award. 
 
She has served as a Member of the Queensland Law Society's In-House Committee and as the In-House Advisor to the Women Lawyers Association Queensland. She is also a founding Board Member of the Centre for Legal Innovation’s Emerging Leaders Advisory Board.
 
Mel launched her passion project, "Counsel", a self-made podcast about in-house lawyer life, during the first COVID-19 Lockdown. The podcast now reaches an audience in over 25 countries and has been downloaded more than 100,000 times. She is a passionate advocate for all things in house and also shares career insights for law students and graduates on Instagram and TikTok under the moniker @theinhouselawyer.

Omro is currently working inhouse for the building and construction regulator in Victoria, after nearly 5 years inhouse in the private sector. Last year, he was a finalist for the Corporate Counsel Awards in the construction and real estate category.

Paul is responsible for the management and leadership of the LOD Australia business from both an operational and client focused perspective. Paul has played a key role in the growth of the Australian business over the past 10 years and is a member of LOD’s global executive team. Paul joined LOD in 2014 having previously worked as a lawyer in both in-house and private practice environments in London and Hong Kong, headed up an Australian based legal project management business and managed the legal divisions of two global recruitment businesses.

Peter Maloney is the CEO and Managing Director of AUCyber, an award-winning, publicly listed provider specialising in cyber security, secure cloud services and managed services.

AUCyber is trusted by Australia’s leading organisations to deliver cutting-edge cloud and cyber security solutions. AUCyber helps organisations reach best practice security and regulatory compliance, supporting companies navigate the complexities of modern digital threats through innovative services.

With a career spanning over two decades in senior executive roles, Peter has demonstrated strong leadership within Australia's technology sector. Prior to AUCyber, he was the CEO of GlobalX, a leading legal and property technology firm. Under his direction, GlobalX achieved significant milestones, including its acquisition by global tech giant Dye & Durham. Peter then played a pivotal role in managing the integration and strategic alignment of operations as Managing Director of Dye & Durham Australia.

Earlier in his career, Peter was the COO at iCare Solutions, focusing on the development of electronic health records systems for residential aged care. He also held a strategic role as Director of Credit & Information Services at Dun & Bradstreet, where he was a key member of the management buyout team that acquired the company's operations in Australia and New Zealand.

Remy is a blue team cyber security expert with a decade of experience in Federal Government, Private Sector, Law Enforcement, and the Military. He holds a Diploma in Networking, and a Diploma in Systems Administration. He is a GIAC certified security leader, ISO 27001 lead auditor, and IRAP assessor #194.
 
Remy has been awarded a commendation for his cyber training programs, commanded the first Army Cyber Protection Team, and MC’s the ADF Cyber Skills Challenge conference every year. He studied Acting at Victorian College of the Arts and has performed in theatres nationally. While highly technically capable, Remy is also personable and engaging.

Sashi Fernando has 18 years of experience in both legal and commercial roles within the FMCG and Healthcare industries. She presently heads the Legal and Compliance Department at Philips Electronics for Australia and New Zealand. Before her in-house move, Sashi practiced within the commercial team at Maddocks’ Sydney office. Prior to practicing law, Sashi obtained a combined degree in Commerce/Science and gained business experience within the commercial strategy team at Ampol’s Sydney head office.

She combines her knowledge of strategy with her legal experience to assist entities manage their legal operational risk portfolio. Sashi has advised on complex strategic and operational projects such as business divestments of the Philips Lighting and Consumer devices companies. Using lean methodology, Sashi and her team have driven continuous improvements in the legal operational service model and a culture that enables the Legal Department to streamline work.

Transitioning from the business into legal, she values engagement with business stakeholders
to build relationships of trust and encourages proactive engagement with Legal. She is
a strong advocate for creating a Legal Department that is sustainable, where lawyers feel
empowered to create a work life balance and most importantly a Legal Department that fosters a supportive culture.

Sebastian Sequoiah-Grayson is a Unisearch expert and senior lecturer in epistemics at the School of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of New South Wales. His research spans across many areas of human information processing, including substructural epistemic logics, dynamic theories of negative information, data sonification, psychological theories of free will, ethics of computer science and information, and philosophy of mathematics. He is the co-author of the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy entries on Logic and Information, and Semantic Conceptions of Information, and has published his research across a range of specialist journals. He received his doctorate from the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Oxford at Balliol College, where he studied under Timothy Williamson and Luciano Florid.

Shaun is a lawyer and the Chief Legal Evangelist at LawVu. He also provides project management and legal technology services to legal teams across the world. Shaun has woven innovation and project management into all stages of his legal career both in private and in-house legal practice. Starting his career in contracts engineering, Shaun moved into the legal profession, with his focus on project and change management. His legal background spans public, private enterprises in environmental and project law, where he has delivered large capital construction projects. He teaches Legal Project Management with the College of Law (New Zealand) and enjoys transforming complex frameworks into simple and intuitive technical systems.

Theo Kapodistrias is a multi-award-winning lawyer, based in Hobart, Tasmania. He is the General Counsel at Evergen - an energy management software company. He is also an award-winning speaker, trainer and public speaking coach, running his own business www.theokap.com.au.

He has been recognised for his work in the legal and community space winning several awards including the Lawyers Weekly 30 under 30 Award in 2017 and 2018, the Academic, Education and Training Lawyer of the Year at the 2018 Corporate Counsel Awards, the Young Lawyer of the Year at the 2020 Law Society of Tasmania Awards, and has been named one of Australia's Most Influential Lawyers by the Australasian Lawyer Magazine in both 2022 and 2023.

He is a Non-Executive Director of the Association of Corporate Counsel Australia and Business Events Tasmania. In ACC Australia, he is also the Tasmanian Divisional President and Chair of the Sole Legal Officer Special Interest Group. In 2021, Theo took on the role as Executive Director and Licensee of TEDxHobart and is the host of a podcast titled ‘Craft Messages That Matter.’ In 2022, he was named one of Australia and New Zealand's Best Speech Coaches and the Speaker of the Year at the 2020 International Coaches Awards. In 2023, he delivered his own TEDx Talk at TEDxKatoomba titled "Lessons from my Ethnic Lunchbox."

Tom oversees Australia for TLS, having setup the local presence in 2017 and driving 6 years of double digit growth. Tom works with legal professionals in-house and private practice – utilising technology to reduce the cost, risk and time associated with disputes, due diligence, information governance and data privacy. He has a passion for innovation, new technology and forging long-term partnerships with his clients.D