She recently headed up the government and regulatory practice at KPMG Law
Felicity Cooper, former head of the government and regulatory practice at KPMG Law, has commenced as an expert advisor at Proximity.
Cooper has taken the lead on complex impact assessments, procurement and contract management activities, legislation projects, and reform and process improvements throughout various government agencies. She has worked in the public sector for two decades.
Over her 11-year run with KPMG Law, she helmed major projects such as providing legislative assurance on all aspects of Services Australia’s implementation of COVID-19 response measures. She also backed the development of legislation to set up a complex new regulatory system in the areas of defence and national security.
Moreover, Cooper guided the Victorian Government in relation to regulatory improvement initiatives.
“Felicity is highly regarded and respected in the government legal community. Not only does she have diverse sectoral experience, including in defence, she also brings strong strategic commercial and procurement expertise”, Proximity CEO Zoe Lynam said. “Felicity is a great cultural fit and shares Proximity’s values of genuine people, bold approach and helpful outcomes. Felicity’s specialist experience, coupled with the unrivalled strategic skills of our broader legal, commercial and consulting practices, will help our clients navigate their greatest legal challenges”.
Cooper explained that flexibility factored into her decision to join Proximity.
“This role enables me to continue doing what I love and that’s working with government to overcome challenges and helping it to achieve measurable outcomes that impact everyday Australians. With a young family, I sought an employer that would provide flexibility while ensuring opportunities to work on meaningful and strategically significant projects”, she said.
Cooper stepped into her new role this week. She operates from Canberra.
In July, Elise Poiner also started her tenure as an expert advisor at Proximity in Canberra. She has worked within the public sector for 12 years.
She took on senior executive positions managing in-house legal, compliance and procurement functions in her 20-year career. In addition to legal roles, she has held technology and commercial positions as well and supported enterprise transformation projects.
“Having led significant procurement and sourcing initiatives, and supported large-scale projects as head of legal, compliance and procurement functions, Proximity was a natural next step for me. The multidisciplinary nature of the business means I can continue to work on big projects using my legal and commercial expertise and continue to refine and broaden my capabilities”, Poiner explained.
