Bonnie is a senior associate in Lander & Rogers' Commercial Disputes and Insolvency team. She has been practising in commercial disputes and litigation since her admission to practice in 2016.
Experience
Bonnie has experience conducting litigation and dispute resolution in local/magistrates' courts, the District Court, Supreme Court and Federal Court, as well as the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Bonnie advises her clients on a range of areas, including:
- dispute resolution, including litigation and alternative dispute resolution
- corporations and insolvency laws and regulations, including in respect of voluntary administration and liquidation, as well as shareholder and director disputes
- property law disputes, including strata scheme disputes, real property and leasing, and equitable claims
- a range of general commercial contract disputes, traversing franchising laws, competition and consumer laws, and intellectual property
Bonnie's clients range from individuals (company directors, shareholders, and in-house counsel) to small, medium and large corporations, including insurers and insolvency practitioners.
Prior to joining Lander & Rogers, Bonnie worked as a lawyer with a start-up boutique commercial law firm, focusing on debt recovery, franchising and intellectual property disputes, and general commercial contract disputes. Working with a start-up law firm early on in her career, Bonnie developed a keen interest in legal tech, innovation and the delivery of more efficient and accessible legal services for clients. She continues to be actively involved in Lander & Rogers' initiatives in this space, including the utilisation of eDiscovery and eBrief services to increase efficiency and minimise costs for clients.
Bonnie is also dedicated to ensuring access to justice for vulnerable or disadvantaged persons, and is involved with the firm's pro bono legal practice, primarily assisting referrals through Justice Connect.
Career highlights
Bonnie's career highlights include:
- acting for a government department in District Court debt recovery proceedings involving complex issues of recovery of funds paid from the consolidated revenue without parliamentary authority and the application of statutory limitations to the principles set down in Auckland Harbour Board v The King, and obtaining judgment in favour of the department for the full amount claimed, which was over $300,000
- acting for a large multinational company as the applicant in a strata dispute in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal involving issues arising from the responsibility to maintain structures on common property within part strata parcels and achieving a favourable commercial settlement for the client
- acting for a large multinational company as plaintiff in multiple Supreme Court proceedings involving contractual claims of approximately $300 million and complex force majeure issues arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, and achieving a favourable commercial settlement for the client
- acting for the special administrators of a CATSI Act organisation to obtain freezing orders and bring proceedings against multiple defendants implicated in the misappropriation of the organisation's funds of over $2.4 million
- acting on a pro bono basis in Supreme Court proceedings for a client claiming an equitable interest in real property based upon principles of proprietary estoppel, and achieving a successful mediated outcome
- acting for multiple defendants in a Supreme Court equity matter commenced by the trustees of a bankrupt estate involving complex issues of fraud and constructive trusts
- acting for and advising liquidators in the liquidation of a small business including successfully recovering unfair preference payments of approximately $200,000 from both domestic and foreign creditors