Norton Rose Fulbright has named three new partners and three new special counsel in Australia.
Effective 1 January, the promotions span Melbourne and Sydney and the firm’s banking and finance, corporate and insurance practice groups. It also follows the promotion of six new partners in May.
The three new partners are Matt Ellis (Insurance, Melbourne), James Morris (Banking and Finance, Sydney) and Jyoti Singh (Corporate, Melbourne). The three new special counsel are Maija Kerry (Corporate, Sydney), James Love (Litigation, Melbourne) and Andrew Willekes (Litigation, Sydney).
Ellis advises the insurance sector in both non-contentious and contentious matters, including in respect of corporate transactions, commercial contracting, distribution, regulation, reinsurance and disputes. He acts for local and London market insurers in professional indemnity, D&O, liability, and property disputes.
He also advises insurers and intermediaries on conduct and prudential regulatory matters, distribution, disclosure obligations, policy and treaty wordings, financial services and regulatory enforcement. He has extensive knowledge of the sector across general, life and health insurance, and a deep understanding of all facets of the conduct of insurance business. He trained with the firm in 2003 and has practiced in the Melbourne and London offices.
Meanwhile, Morris has extensive experience in domestic and international debt capital markets, corporate finance and receivables financing transactions and the provision of Australian regulatory advice. He has acted for issuers and banks on many domestic and international bond transactions, and has an in depth knowledge of the financial institutions and infrastructure industries.
Singh is a highly experienced corporate mergers and acquisitions practitioner based in Melbourne. She focuses on complex, cross border private treaty M&A and equity raisings for clients in the financial institutions, food & agribusiness, transport and technology & innovation industries.
She has consistently acted for small and large corporates on complex domestic and cross-border transactions, and also regularly acts for warranty and indemnity insurers. She has been with the firm since she completed her articles and also spent 18 months practising M&A in our London office. She is highly regarded by clients for her technical and commercial acumen and her ability to build rapport with all members of the transaction team, including clients and advisers. She is described by the firm as a well-rounded practitioner and a strong female role model who makes a considerable contribution to the diversity and pro bono activities of the firm.
The promotions follow the addition of six new partners in May: Jeffery Black (financial restructuring and insolvency, Perth); Ben Davis (litigation, Melbourne); Georgina Hey (intellectual property, Sydney); John Moran (insurance, Sydney); Tim Mornane (banking and finance; financial restructuring and insolvency, Sydney); and Meriel Steadman (litigation, Perth).
NRF has also added eight lateral partners in 2016 in Australia: Peter Lamont, Ellen Thomas, Jacques Jacobs, Samantha Kelly, Peter Bowden, Samantha Maddern, Katherine Morris and Karo Lelai who is principal in Port Moresby.
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