Geoff joined his father Hamish in the practice of Deem & Shearer at Inglewood during 1979 and became a partner in 1981. Following the merger of Deem & Shearer and Govett Quilliam on 1 January 2004, Geoff is now the resident partner at the Inglewood office.
Geoff’s speciality is rural law and he has built up an extensive knowledge in the areas of farm conveyancing, company and trust structures for farm ownership and estate planning for farmers.
Geoff also has considerable experience in all residential and commercial conveyancing areas and the formation and administration of family trusts.
Geoff is the Chairman of the Inglewood Development Trust, an honorary solicitor to Taranaki Golf Association and solicitor to many local sporting organisations and schools.
Geoff is a keen golfer and enjoys fishing, tennis, rugby and cricket.
Paul has for many years acted for large corporates regionally, nationally and internationally. He has developed a particular expertise in the energy sector providing legal support and advice to oil and gas companies in New Zealand, Australia and Indonesia.
He is a member of the New Zealand Chapter of the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators.
He has provided primary legal support for Port Taranaki, Taranaki District Health Board and Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki for over 20 years. He also acts for the innovative and entrepreneurial Macfarlane Group.Paul has in recent years been involved in a variety of projects including:
Paul is an Honorary Life Member of the Taranaki Cancer Society, having been the President for a number of years and a former Chairman of the Relay for Life Committee. Paul is a former President of Taranaki Marriage Guidance (now Relationship Services) and was a Trustee of the Taranaki Velodrome Trust, which has brought to Taranaki a state of the art Cycle Park incorporating a road circuit and velodrome.
Paul enjoys cycling, golf, going to the gym and spending time with family.
Paul has extensive experience in a wide range of commercial matters and sectors. These include financing, tax, leasing, joint ventures, documenting trading relationships, major asset purchases, service contracts and effective structuring.
Advice to corporate clients includes novel and uncharted areas providing an opportunity to create tailor made solutions.
Paul is called on often to provide governance advice to corporate and commercial clients.
Paul has spent many years working with the technology clients of the firm from early internet pioneers through to a diverse range of current entrepreneurs. This has included establishment advice, setting trading terms, resolving licensing and structuring arrangements, developing joint venture relationships, and has extended through to the ultimate sale by the founders to a third party.
Paul is a trustee of the Atawhai Industries Trust and a past trustee on the Omata School Board. Paul is also a Trustee of the Taranaki FM Trust which operates The Most FM.
Paul is a trustee of the Taranaki branch of Big Brothers Big Sisters, which is an international charity that organises adult mentors to guide young people who are at risk. Paul is also a trustee of the Te Puna Trust which has introduced the 'Early Start' programme to Taranaki, and is a member of the New Plymouth Boys' High School Board of Trustees.
Paul enjoys all sport, particularly rugby, cricket and golf. Paul is married to Laurie and has three children.
Andrew has been a partner at Govett Quilliam since 1998.
Andrew specialises in criminal, civil and employment litigation. He has appeared in over 200 District and High Court jury trials acting for both the Crown and the defence in respect of criminal and civil matters. Andrew has also appeared in the Supremem Court and has represented a number of clients in the Court of Appeal.
Andrew regularly appears in the Employment Relations Authority for both mediations and investigations. Over the last fifteen years Andrew has developed an extensive employment law practice and acts for a number of large corporate clients providing advice on issues such as human resource needs, restructuring and disciplinary issues. Andrew also leads a number of seminars on employment related issues throughout Taranaki.
Andrew also appears in other jurisdictions including the Employment Court, Refugee Status Appeal Authority, Human Rights Review Tribunal, the Motor Vehicle Dealers Licensing Board and the Environment Court.
When away from the office Andrew enjoys running, skiing, surfing and going to the gym. Andrew is married with three children.
Alex is married to Kate and they have three children. Participting in social sports, attending local events and arts and culture is an important part of Alex's world.
Alex is of Atihaunui a Paparangi, Tuwharetoa, Ngati Rangi, Ngai Tumapuhia Rangi, and Ngai Tahu decent.
Lauren is the founding member of the Taranaki branch of the Resource Management Law Association (and past president and secretary) and the honorary solicitor of the Friends of the Govett Brewster/Len Lye Centre and of Heritage Taranaki Incorporated.
Lauren enjoys running, mountain biking, skiing and travel but generally spends most of her spare time as Mum to her young sons. She is a keen supporter of the arts and New Zealand music and a self-confessed "foodie".
Alice joined Govett Quilliam in March 2010 after relocating to Taranaki from Wellington. She was made an associate of the firm on 1 April 2011 and became a partner on 24 February 2014.
Alice currently leads the private client team. Prior to this she specialised in commercial and property work within the oil and gas industry.
Alice is a board member of both Sports Taranaki and the Taranaki Hockey Federation. She is also a member of the Nga Manu Reo Toastmasters club.
Alice enjoys spending her spare time with family and friends, appreciates good food and keeps fit by running and playing hockey.
Lyal is the Chief Executive Officer at Govett Quilliam.
Lyal comes from a background in education. He was the principal at New Plymouth Boys' High School for 13 years, and more recently has been based overseas as executive principal of one of the largest international schools in the world.
Lyal’s focus is the strategic vision of Govett Quilliam. His role includes the development and implementation of Govett Quilliam’s strategic plan to ensure that our clients continue to receive the very best level of service and advice. He will be responsible for implementing progressive and innovative strategies to grow and develop our firm in new opportunities and markets.
Lyal’s experience as a leader in education brings to Govett Quilliam strong guidance and management skills, as well as the ability to work with individuals on personal development.
In his spare time Lyal enjoys sports, cultural activities and being with family and friends. He tries to keep fit by walking, cycling and golfing.
Kaye is a member of our family team and is experienced in all aspects of family law and the law relating to the protection of personal and property rights, including;
Kaye's special interest is in the law relating to children. She is regularly appointed as senior lawyer to represent children or as lawyer to assist the Court in Family Court disputes and matters involving Child, Youth and Family Services.
Kaye has presented papers at seminars and written submissions relating to proposed government legislation in a number of areas of family law.
Kaye has been involved with a number of community based organisations and currently is a trustee of the Taranaki Family/Whanau Centre Trust and a member of the Clinical Ethics Advisory Group (Taranaki District Health Board).
Caroline joined the Govett Quilliam Oil and Gas division as a Consultant in June 2014 and will be based in the firm’s Wellington office.
Caroline has a commercial law background and has worked in the upstream oil and gas industry for the last 7 years. She was involved in the review of the Crown Minerals Act regime in her role as legal advisor to Crown Minerals (now New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals) and has worked as in-house counsel for a large oil and gas exploration and production company. She is now a consultant specialising in regulation and policy in the upstream oil and gas industry.
Caroline is a Director of Totum Limited, a company she founded to develop a permit management and compliance tool for petroleum permit operators in New Zealand.
Caroline enjoys art, fashion and music and getting creative with her daughter in her spare time.
Now that her children are older and independent she enjoys "me time" in her gardens, walking, travelling and spending time with her family and friends.
She has also joined Canine Friends and now takes her dog Storm for weekly visits to Marinoto Rest Home in Inglewood where he gets heaps of pats and cuddles with the residents.
Debbie is a farmer’s daughter, born and raised in Huirangi where she currently resides. In fact, she loves Huirangi so much, she was Secretary/Treasurer of the Huirangi Cemetery Board for ten years, carrying on the Osborne tradition. She also has two nephews (hopefully three one day) who attend Huirangi School. Family roots are at the heart of all Debbie does.
Heather has been employed with Govett Quilliam since September 2007.
Heather is our client floor manager and receptionist. As well as providing all our clients with a warm greeting, her role also includes general accounting and trust administration duties, managing our deeds, undertaking title searches, and organising client functions.
Heather values the ‘Client First’ philosophy at GQ and enjoys having a good relationship with clients and staff.
Heather enjoys helping out her family and grandchildren as well as doing voluntary work for the TSB Showplace and New Plymouth Event Venues.
On leaving school in 1975 Julie was employed by Deem & Shearer (which then merged with Govett Quilliam) and she has been with us ever since.
Following the merger with Govett Quilliam in 2004 she became a qualified Legal Executive after obtaining her NZLS Legal Executive Diploma.
Julie has worked primarily as a Personal Assistant to Geoff Shearer in our Inglewood Office, which keeps her busy and engaged.
For many years Julie was very involved in the sport of marching with many Taranaki and National titles being achieved by the teams she coached. Since retiring from the sport she now has more time for travel, reading, watching sport and has recently taken up knitting.
Karen has been a valued member of GQ since 1976. She is a Senior Legal Executive and is part of our Private Client Team. Prior to joining this team Karen worked closely with Ross Fanthorpe in our Innovators Team. She is an Associate Member of the New Zealand Institute of Legal Executives.
Her areas of expertise incl ude conveyancing of commercial, private and farming properties, business transactions, trusts, Wills and finance matters.
Karen has extensive knowledge regarding conveyancing, refinancing and generally assisting private clients regarding their on-going needs.
Karen has a large loyal client base and many of her clients are generational with the children of her original clients now seeking her legal expertise.
Karen has been involved with trusts, asset protection, Wills and Enduring Powers of Attorney.
Buying and selling of farm properties is also an area that Karen enjoys.
Over the years Karen has been involved with subdivisions and works closely with clients to
achieve their goals within the timeframes required.
Karen has two sons who have semi flown the nest (maybe not so financially) so she has more time to spend on her own pursuits. She enjoys visiting the wonderful places Taranaki has to offer and one of the highlights of each year is visiting the various gardens in the Garden Spectacular.
Blair has led the Elder Law team at Govett Quilliam since November 2017.
Prior to joining GQ Blair specialised as a litigation lawyer in Australia in relation to trustee, estate and insolvency issues, farming and property related disputes.
Blair also enjoyed a successful career prior to working as a lawyer in private practice. This includes
Blair is determined in achieving results for his clients and is practical and innovative.
Blair is married with 3 children. His wife is a born and bred Taranaki girl and they have recently moved to New Plymouth to be with the family and enjoy the fabulous Taranaki lifestyle.
Blair also enjoys tennis, cycling and playing the saxophone.
Brad is a registered legal executive. He joined Govett Quilliam in 1984 and is a member of one of our commercial teams. Prior to Brad's enrolment as a member of the New Zealand Institute of Legal Executives in 1988, he worked in the banking industry.
Brad acts on a wide range of conveyancing and property transactions, subdivisions as well as trusts and asset protection.
Brad has developed an expertise in easements and eDealings.
Outside of the office, Brad enjoys golf, cycling and keeping fit.
Sandy originally joined Govett Quilliam in 1978 and left after a few years to have her family. Sandy returned in 1994 and worked as a personal assistant to John Eagles for some years before undertaking and completing her Legal Executive qualification. She was made a Fellow of the Legal Executives Institute of New Zealand in May 2012.
Sandy works as a legal executive in the Inglewood office and undertakes a large portion of the conveyancing generated through that office. She is also responsible for and extremely competent in all aspects of sub-divisional work including drafting of easements and land covenants and is experienced with all matters relating to e-dealing and working with Land Information New Zealand to achieve outcomes beneficial to her clients.
She also has a keen interest in elder law and is responsible for estate administration at the Inglewood office.
Sandy enjoys her grandchildren, the outdoors, travel and dancing (all genres but mainly ceroc and ballroom).
Margaret is a very experienced Registered Legal Executive and Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives. She joined Govett Quilliam in 1986 and was made a Consultant in 2004. Margaret has a special interest in rural matters affecting farmers. She is now the Treasurer of the Taranaki Branch of Federated Farmers which enhances the work she does.
As a dairy farmer herself, Margaret has experience in hands on dairying as well as legal issues concerning farmers.
Margaret has also dealt and continues to deal with farmers negotiating with oil companies, buying and selling dairy farms, residential property matters, wills, trusts, commercial business sales and trusts. Margaret has a good relationship with many outside organisations. Her range of skills also extends to editorship of a Govett Quilliam specialist newsletter, that is sent to our rural clients.
Margaret has five children and is activley involved in the PTA at Sacred Heart Girls' College New Plymouth. Margaret is also involved with dancing Taranaki, having two daughters doing ballet and jazz, as well as being actively involved in the St Josephs Church community in New Plymouth.
Margaret enjoys ballet, farming and spending time with her family.Chris is a Registered Legal Executive and has been with us since 2007. Chris specialises in the oil and gas sector, and in particular, in matters relating to property interests. Chris regularly provides in house support for the property teams of our large corporate clients , including where necessary secondment and project management .
Chris has wide-ranging experience in all property matters (drawn from her many years of working in the rural and residential sector and more latterly , in the oil and gas sector). Her skills include:
• development of Property Interest Databases for our Oil and Gas clients
• Oil and gas pipeline easement and land access work;
• property due diligence investigations
• complex subdivision work (including large multi-lot residential developments)
• complex commercial transactional work
Chris enjoys spending time with her family and working in her large country garden. Chris also has a keen interest in information technology and is currently completing papers through Massey University to extend her knowledge in this area, and to compliment her work in developing databases.
Fleur has been with GQ since August 2007. She is the Estates Legal Executive and handles administration of all estates within the New Plymouth office.
Along with administering of Estates, Fleur also deals with the preparation of Wills, Enduring Powers of Attorney, assisting with Occupation Licence Agreements with Retirement Villages and residential sale and purchases for estate and existing clients.
Fleur qualified as a Registered Legal Executive in 2012 after completing the NZLS Legal Executive Diploma.
She has spent all her time at Govett Quilliam working closely with families who have lost their loved ones and assisting them with the administration of the estates. Fleur has great knowledge of the estate administration process and what is required to tidy up a persons affairs after their passing.
Fleur also has extensive knowledge of Enduring Powers of Attorney and is experienced in preparing Wills for clients to ensure their wishes are carried out.
She has good understanding of what is required when clients are considering entering Retirement Villages and is happy to assist with the explanations involved with signing Occupation Licences.
Fleur also has experience in conveyancing and looks after residential sale and purchases for her clients.
Fleur is the President of the New Plymouth Repertory Society.
Fleur enjoys theatre, both on stage and as a director. She also enjoys travel and spending time with her family.Karen joined Govett Quilliam in 2012, when she moved to New Plymouth from Gisborne. She began working as Family Team Co-ordinator and since joining the firm she has completed her Legal Executive Diploma.
Karen is passionate about her work and enjoys giving invaluable support to the team of family law specialists within the firm. Karen really enjoys that her job involves interaction with people. She finds it rewarding to be able to assist people in an area of life than can sometimes be difficult for them, and is often the first line of contact with new clients requiring family law assistance.
In her spare time Karen loves spending time at the beach and outdoors, she enjoys exploring the great walking tracks that Taranaki has to offer, ocean swimming and socialising with her family and friends.
Suzanne joined Govett Quilliam in April 2006 as a Legal Secretary and was promoted to Legal Executive in February 2014. Suzanne has over ten years' experience working in Taranaki law firms. She gained her Legal Executive Certificate in 2011. Suzanne supports Alice Tocher and Paul Franklin in conveyancing and commercial matters.
Suzanne specialises in conveyancing and commercial work, and in particular the area of residential conveyancing and refinancing matters.
Suzanne's experience includes:
Suzanne enjoys spending time with family, travelling, learning the guitar and keeping fit.
Kirsten moved to New Plymouth with her family from the UK in January 2017 and is now Administrative Assistant to one of our Partners, Paul Anderson, and two of our Legal Executives, Fleur Coombe and Brad Miles, working mainly within the fields of conveyancing, estates and commercial law.
She supports the Legal Executives throughout the sale/purchase process (by preparing Agreements for Sale and Purchase and other documentation required for buying and selling properties, carrying out property searches, and liaising with and preparing correspondence for clients) and in the handling of estates (by preparing Probate/Letters of Administration documents for the High Court). She assists in preparing Wills and Enduring Powers of Attorney. As part of her work in the area of commercial law, Kirsten assists Paul in drawing up contracts, drafting deeds and advice, and liaising with clients.
Whilst this is a new career for Kirsten, who has spent over 10 years in teaching and management roles within Education, the field of law is one she is familiar with having studied Law and German Law at University in the UK and in Germany.
Kirsten’s young family keeps her busy outside the office, as well as getting to know her new home, Taranaki.
Weekends are spent enjoying all that New Plymouth and the surrounding areas have to offer, and making the most of the outdoors and the sunshine, when it appears! Apparently it rains just as much here as in the UK although she says the sunshine is definitely a few degrees warmer. Kirsten enjoys playing squash and doing Pilates. She is an avid skier and looks forward to testing out the local and national ski fields in the years to come.Laura began working with GQ in February 2017. Her administration role covers many different aspects which involves many diverse jobs across the entirety of the team.
Laura completed a Certificate in Business at WITT last year which included papers in Business Communication, Computing, Commercial Law, Organisation and Management and Accounting.
In her spare time she does a lot of reading and spends time with family including camping out at Urenui beach. She also enjoys swimming and walking along the coastal walkway, as well as photography and painting.
Lea has been with GQ since November 2016 and has enjoyed working in a great team environment and soaking up a lot of the knowledge that has come along with it.
She is aiming to attain her Diploma in Legal Executive Studies in the near future.
Her role as an Administrator covers various jobs around the office including reception duties, deeds, banking and dictation.
Lea spends a lot of her spare time with her family and friends. She loves to be out and about and active. She also enjoys reading and is a huge Warriors fan (even when times are tough…)
Sophie comes from a strategic business and people background, with experience in human resource management and psychometrics in the United Arab Emirates, people and marketing at TVNZ, and as Managing Director of local Taranaki Accounting firm Strategy Collective. She holds senior governance roles as Chair of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce, Chair of the CEO Forum, and participation on the Committee for the Regional Economic Development Strategy.
Sophie is responsible for managing Govett Quilliam's capability to innovate and make the most of opportunities, from a technology, functionality, skills and cultural perspective. She is a strong advocate for engaging with the team to ensure innovation becomes a cultural mind-set.
Sophie has two children, Isabella and Theo, and leads a busy and active lifestyle with a keen interest in ocean swimming, boxing and running.
She also has a strong community spirit with involvement in youth programmes such as Accelerator, Big Brothers Big Sisters and student exchanges.
Peter comes from a background in Tertiary Education. He has held senior management positions at The Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki (WITT) and more recently with the PrimaryITO in Wellington.
Peter is responsible for managing Govett Quilliam's Administration and Information Technology. He is a strong advocate for continuous improvement especially through innovation and automation. He enjoys the collegial and supportive team environment at Govett Quilliam.
Peter leads an active and healthy lifestyle with his main physical activities being running, swimming (Flannagan Cup), gym, dancing and yoga.
He has also been a volunteer for a number of local organisations over recent years and enjoys giving back to the community and helping make our community a great place to live.
Linda joined Govett Quilliam as the Client Trust Manager in April 2016. Linda comes from an extensive background in Finance and Banking working in various roles throughout her career. Her last role, which she held for 10 years, was Commercial Analyst for Westpac Bank.
Linda is responsible for reviewing client Trusts annually. Govett Quilliam takes its obligations as Independent Trustee for its Trusts very seriously. Reviewing the Trusts annually ensures that our clients receive the best level of advice and service.
Keeping fit is something that Linda enjoys, this includes going for walks and the gym. Living on a lifestyle property also keeps her very busy and allows her to enjoy time in the garden with her animals. She loves baking and cooking.
Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her two grand-babies Eden and Hamish.
She also enjoys spending time with the new addition to her family, Teddy rose, a black miniature Poodle.
Lorraine is a keen gardener and enjoys sewing, knitting and cross stitching.
Outside of work Maree lives on a farm property with her family and is always striving for the elusive “work-life-me balance”.
Megan has been with us since December 2016. She is in charge of the daily operations of the Trust Account and Interest Bearing Deposit Accounts.
Megan’s responsibilities are all the daily transactions of the Trust Account, daily/monthly reconciliations, client investment monies and other core financial transactions. She enjoys a busy Friday with lots of property settlements!
Megan has ten years experience in operating a Solicitor’s Trust Account. She was also the second in charge to the Office Manager at a different New Plymouth law firm.
Megan has had previous roles in the Insurance Industry and as a Recruitment Consultant but after a few years of doing these roles she has returned to being a Solicitor’s Trust Account Administrator.
Megan’s partner and teenage son are very much into cars, so she finds herself at many motorsport/drag racing/speedway events around the country. She also enjoys taking her two dogs for walks.
Paula joined GQ as an EA in May 2016.
Paula currently supports Alice Tocher, Margaret Steiner-Joyce, Suzanne Duke and Kirsty Miller. Paula has worked in a variety of different industries and brings to the team experience in operations, project management, office management as well as an executive assistant.
In her spare time Paula enjoys renovating old houses.
Rachel started working at GQ in 1991 and after 14 years left (for a couple of years) to raise her family. She has been back working in the Family Team for the past eight years.
Outside of GQ she is kept busy with her two boys, she enjoys getting out in the garden, walking the dog and playing netball. She has been a coach/committee member with North Taranaki Special Olympics for the last 20 years.
Dr Maria A Pozza joined Govett Quilliam as a Senior Lawyer in 2017 and brings with her a range of legal skills and experience.
Maria is a senior corporate solicitor in our corporate and energy teams and provides an extensive range of legal services including: energy, oil and gas, FinTech, intellectual property, mergers and acquisitions, financial regulation, regulatory compliance, technology, telecoms, public law, IT, franchise agreements, and corporate advisory.
Maria is an internationally recognised expert in space law, and she is the official legal adviser on space law to the Royal Astronomical Society in New Zealand. Maria’s expertise extends to the law of Drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) and cybersecurity (including cryptocurrencies and block chain). Maria course coordinates and teaches INTP 201 cybersecurity and teaches international relations INTP 113 at the School of History, Philosophy, Political Science and International Relations, University of Victoria, Wellington.
Maria is well known and regarded for her strategic legal advice and ability to offer outside of the box solutions for her clients. Recognised as a skilled lawyer, Maria was announced as a Finalist for the 2017 Young Private Practitioner Award at the New Zealand Law Awards. AI Global Magazine has referred to her as the New Zealand Woman in Law to Watch.
Maria probably wouldn't tell you this, but we will... she has been the recipient of a number of prestigious awards including:
• Appreciation Award by the Disability, Information and Support Unit at the University of Otago
• Inter-Pacific Bar Association Scholar;
• Peace and Disarmament Education Trust Award;
• New Zealand Political Studies Association Projects Awards;
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Historical Research Grant;
• Visiting Lauterpacht Fellowship at the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge, UK; and....a huge list of other awards and travel grants.
Maria’s experience overseas is also noteworthy and among others includes: volunteer work in Materi – Kenya; and, internship with two separate law firms in Huntsville –Texas working on death row cases.
Maria likes to publish work in various journals and has contributed many book chapters across many disciplines. She also likes to get involved in the legal community and she has been a Member of the Canterbury-Westland Law Society Branch Council as well as the Canterbury-Westland Law Society Trusts Committee. Her commitment to greater access to legal advice has seen Maria as a volunteer lawyer for the Citizens Advice Bureau.
In her spare time, Maria likes to tour around on her motorbike, play mum to her cat, she especially likes to go to the gym and pretend to do a work out (you will probably find her in the sauna reading or at the juice bar making friends), and watching the rugby, golf or cricket.
Laurie joined Govett Quilliam in May 2001 as part of our Family and Employment teams. She was appointed as an Associate of the firm on 1 April 2005. Laurie returned to the Inglewood branch of Govett Quilliam in February 2015 following five years of maternity leave.
Laurie is a respected member of the Taranaki family bar. Laurie has experience in all areas of family law, including parenting orders for day to day care and contact, protection and occupation orders, spousal maintenance, dissolution of marriage, applications under the PPPR Act for welfare guardian and property manager orders, preparation and administration of trusts and relationship property division.
Laurie is regularly appointed by the Ministry of Justice as lawyer for the child in parenting disputes in proceedings involving the Care of Children Act 2004 and the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989.
Laurie has been a past member of the Fitzroy kindergarten committee and is a current friend of Fitzroy School.
Laurie is married with three busy children. Laurie enjoys spending quality time with her family and friends, reading, travel, cooking, tramping, pilates and playing and watching tennis (particularly if Roger Federer is playing!).
Sonja has been with GQ since 2008.
Her areas of expertise include immigration, property and commercial law.
Sonja has experience in immigration work for both permanent and temporary New Zealand visas and is able to offer guidance and assistance on a range of immigration matters.
Her experience involves assisting clients with their residence applications for the skilled migrant, family, and business & investor categories as well as work, study and visitor temporary entry applications.
Sonja has experience in assisting clients work through the variety of issues that may arise with New Zealand visa applications including the preparation of character and medical waivers.
She has lodged a number of appeals to the Immigration and Protection Tribunal regarding declined residence class visa applications and also been involved in applications for New Zealand citizenship.
In addition to the above, Sonja has practiced in the areas of residential & commercial conveyancing, commercial leases, trusts, intellectual property work involving trade mark applications, retirement villages compliance and charities law.
Sonja is a member of the New Zealand Association for Migration & Investment and has previously volunteered for the New Plymouth Citizens Advice Bureau.
She has a strong interest in other cultures, languages and customs. Sonja is interested in meeting people from all over the world and in her spare time, likes to travel and spend time with her family.
Kirsty is a senior lawyer within our commercial team specialising in procurement and outsourcing, leasing, construction contracts, property rights and corporate governance.
She has broad commercial experience advising clients across a range of industries, including oil and gas, transport, construction and property development.
Presently, Kirsty provides in-house legal services to First Gas and general business law advice to private clients. Prior to joining Govett Quilliam Kirsty spent several years working as an in-house lawyer for Air New Zealand.
Kirsty’s experience includes:
Kirsty also advises private clients in relation to residential and commercial property sales and purchases, trusts and estate planning, wills, enduring powers of attorney, estate administration and other areas of general practice.
Kirsty is kept busy with her two young daughters and their many activities. She is a big fan of the local café and music scene and enjoys keeping active with running , netball and basketball.
Rebecca joined GQ in 2016, after working in the Resource Management team at a large corporate law firm in Auckland. She is a solicitor and practices in resource management, local government, employment and general litigation.
Rebecca has experience advising and representing clients on a range of resource management matters, including consent and plan change applications. Rebecca has also assisted both private and public sector clients in relation to various District Plan reviews. Rebecca has a particular interest in urban planning and development.
Rebecca enjoys advising and representing clients in relation to a range of local government issues including bylaws and policies, road stopping and Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act matters.
Rebecca also provides advice and represents clients in relation to disputes under the Construction Contracts Act 2002, the Weathertight Homes Resolution Services Act 2006 and other building and construction matters.
Rebecca loves making the most of the beautiful Taranaki coastline and New Plymouth's thriving cafe scene with her family and friends. She enjoys living an active lifestyle spending her spare time in the gym, at the many parks with her Labrador or at the beach. She also volunteers regularly at the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Miaana joined Govett Quilliam in November 2014 after completing her law degree and Bachelor of Arts (Māori) at the University of Otago. She is a lawyer in our family law and Te Tira Hau Ture (Māori legal services) teams.
Her areas of expertise include Care of Children Act and Domestic Violence proceedings, general Family Court advocacy, dispute resolution, the application of Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993 (including the establishment and governance of Māori land trusts, succession to interests in Maaori land, the rules of alienation of Māori land including the rights of first refusal to the preferred class of alienee, protection of wahi tapu sites, access to Māori land including roadways and easements, and partitioning Māori land and other title improvements) and providing general advice about Māori legal issues affecting individuals, whanau, hapuu and iwi.
Miaana provides advice in all areas of family law, including separation, relationship property, Contracting Out Agreements, childcare issues (such as Guardianship, paternity, adoption and care of children) and domestic violence. She is a genuine people person and brings a practical and empathetic approach to family law. Miaana regularly represents clients in the Family courtroom, but where possible seeks to find solutions with her clients which avoid unnecessary litigation.
Ko Taranaki, ko Te Atiawa ona iwi (Miaana is of Taranaki and Te Atiawa descent). Miaana appears in the Māori Land Court on a wide range of issues and she prides herself on finding unique culturally driven solutions tailored to her clients. She understands the importance of receiving excellent legal services from advisors who understand tikanga Māori and how it relates to client needs.
Miaana is involved with the Priscilla Sandys Wunsch Trust. Miaana is also a member of the New Plymouth Old Boys Sports Club and the Oakura Tennis Club. She also volunteers at the Citizens Advice Bureau in New Plymouth.
Miaana loves exploring the beauty that Taranaki has to offer. In her spare time, she enjoys baking, playing tennis, netball and running (preferably downhill and short distances).
Paige joined Govett Quilliam in September 2017, after starting her legal career at another local law firm.
Paige practices in both our Family and Employment Law teams, as well as providing general legal advice to our clients.
Paige has a wide range of Family Law experience and regularly assists our clients with matters such as child care and contact disputes, domestic violence matters, paternity applications, child relocation disputes and guardianship issues.
Paige also has experience in resolving relationship property disputes and advising on how to protect your assets pre and post separation.
Paige has a human resources background and is also experienced in advising both Employee’s and Employer’s in Employment Law matters. This includes advising on employment restructures, redundancies, disciplinary meetings, mediations and Employment Relations Authority Hearing’s.
Paige volunteers in her spare time at the local citizens advice bureau, providing free legal advice to the New Plymouth community.
Paige comes from a family of “motor-heads” so you can often find Paige in her spare time supporting her family in their various motorsport endeavours (thankfully you cannot find her on the racetrack). Paige also enjoys exploring the outdoors and appreciating the beautiful sites that Taranaki has to offer.
Beatrice loves getting out and about with friends and enjoying Taranaki’s beautiful beaches and mountain walks. Coming from Wellington, she is an avid foodie (and coffee addict!), and likes exploring the New Plymouth cafe and restaurant scene.
Troy specialises in general civil and commercial litigation and employment law. Prior to returning to New Plymouth he worked in the United Kingdom for the London office of a large US national commercial law firm and a top 100 UK firm. He has also worked for a large commercial national firm based in Auckland.
Troy has an extensive background in general civil and commercial litigation, including breach of contract, employment, insolvency, construction and property law, debt recovery, banking and finance, partnership and company law disputes. Troy also regularly appears in the Maori Land Court dealing with Maori land and governance issues for Maori organisations.
Troy also advises on day-to-day employment issues, developing employment policies and implementing disciplinary procedures (and conducting disciplinary meetings). He has advised a number of Maori organisations in this regard.
Troy regularly provides pro bono legal work to a number of community organisations and charitable trusts, including Nganahau-a-uru Trust (created partly in order to bring the IronMaori Kaupapa to Taranaki and to encourage whanau to pursue lifestyle changes).
Will has specialist in-house experience with a number of Oil and Gas Corporates. Will's expertise includes reducing business risk through refining and integrating effective risk management and governance with improved processes that align to company activities, scale and objectives.
Will’s Corporate practice regularly sees him drafting, reviewing and advising clients on Procurement, Gas Supply, Charter Party, Land Access, Plug and Abandonment, Crude Sales and JV Operation Agreements.
In private practice, Will enjoys working with innovative, progressive commercial clients on a variety of domestic and international business, construction and property transactions.
Will’s a relationship guy who likes to get to know you, understand your business, and provide advice that you can both understand and action. Whether its contract review or preparing terms of trade, constitutions, shareholder agreements or other commerical related matters, Will is a good man to speak with.
Will has been involved in a number of community based organisations, and is currently a Board Member with Taranaki’s Chamber of Commerce.
Will is a regular weekend warrior, battling the line-ups around Taranaki’s coast. When not surfing, Will is usually spending time with his young family, or (when the stars align) playing golf, or relaxing with friends.
Catherine joined the team at GQ in 2013.
Catherine is based out in our Inglewood office and is part of our rural law team but works closely with other teams using her skills in the commercial and property areas of law. She also assists clients with asset protection and trusts.
Catherine has a depth of experience in the rural sector having been the in-house lawyer for Westland Dairy Company in Hokitika before starting at GQ. She advising on a broad range of farming related legal issues including the sale and purchase of farms, leases and shareholders agreements and succession planning.
In the commercial area, Catherine has acted for many small businesses on a variety of maters including terms of trade, commercial leases as well as sale and purchases.
Catherine acts for many private clients in relation to asset protection and trusts. She has extensive experience in conveyancing and has also acted for many clients moving into a retirement villages or rest homes.
Catherine acts for non-profit organisations and charitable trusts in the Taranaki region.
Catherine is the mother of 4 young children which keeps her very busy! She manages and coaches a variety of sports teams which her children are involved with including tennis, miniball and touch rugby. She is also an active member of the St Pius X Home & School committee.
When she has some time to herself she loves a good book. She also enjoys playing netball and has recently discovered the joys of Gaelic football.
