The lawyer has been working at a global diversified resources company for the past four years. Prio to that she was a lawyer at Ashurst, then Black Dawson.

The firm said Winterbourne's experience as a legal manager within the resources company has given her a wide breadth of experience in providing legal support on nickel operations on business and mine development, regulatory compliance, health and safety and maintaining a licence to operate, to port access, supply chain contracting and dispute resolution.

According to Ashurst E&R Practice Leader Geoff Gishubl: "Katie will be an enormous asset to our team, with her clear understanding of the needs of clients combined with a very firm understanding of the legal requirements in E&R projects, both large and small."