DibbsBarker has welcomed two alumni back to the firm with the appointments of partner Wendy Jacobs and senior associate Masi Zaki.
Jacobs, who returns to the firm’s banking, insolvency and disputes team (BID), was a partner of the firm from 1997 to 2003, when she moved to Russells. She has extensive knowledge of reconstruction and insolvency and works with insolvency advisors and directors of distressed or potentially financially distressed firms.
Jacobs has acted in some of the most high-profile insolvencies and reorganisations in Australia, including HIH, Lehman Brothers, Retail Adventures and the Keystone Group. She acts in the sectors of retail, insurance, financial services, and building and construction.
Zaki is also a DibbsBaker alumnus. He started his law career at the firm in 2007 before moving to
Baker McKenzie in 2012. He transferred to Russells in 2014, where he was also appointed as a senior associate.
Jacobs said that the opportunity to work with experts in areas complimentary to her practice attracted her most to returning to the firm.
Scott Guthrie, partner and head of DibbsBarker’s BID team, said that the firm is pleased to welcome Jacobs back because of her expertise and her market reputation. Guthrie also said that the return of Jacobs and Zaki is part of a bigger plan for the practice.
“Wendy’s return is another large step in our strategic re-investment in the restructuring and insolvency market which commenced with John Stragalinos’ appointment in Melbourne last December, and which is set to continue,” Guthrie said.
Stragalinos leads the BID team in Melbourne, which welcomed special counsel Silvana Larobina from
Corrs Chambers Westgarth in April. That month in Melbourne,
the firm also added senior associate Joseph Ip from King & Wood Mallesons, senior associate Richard Fong from Hall & Wilcox, and associate John Heard from the Supreme Court of Victoria. The firm’s office in Melbourne opened in December.
DibbsBarker has more than 200 partners and staff located in Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney. It specialises in the financial services, insurance, life sciences and healthcare, and real estate and construction sectors.
Wendy Jacobs
Masi Zaki
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