Profiled by legal news publication Lawyerly as one of the country’s top young litigators, Elyse says that while litigation lawyers have the reputation of being aggressive, the reality is quite different.
“I don’t think litigation lawyers are actually aggressive for the sake of being aggressive. It’s collaborative and you can recognise other people’s successes. There’s always a team of people around you that you can rely on and bounce ideas off.”
The Litigation Rising Stars series has identified 30 lawyers aged under 40 for their work in high-stakes litigation. Announcing the successful lawyers, Lawyerly editor Cat Fredenburgh said: “That these young lawyers have taken leading roles in the biggest disputes of the day is not just a testament to their preternatural talents, but to the current transitional moment for the legal industry, as Baby Boomers exit stage left and Millennials exert increasing influence.”
Elyse’s profile focuses on her work on the Hayne banking and financial services royal commission, described as a “pivotal moment” in her career. Acting for leading industry superannuation funds, Elyse led a large team of junior lawyers to achieve an outstanding result, whereby there were no adverse findings. The article also covers her work on a landmark case around whether administrators of the Ten Group should be permitted to do pre-appointment work, without impacting their independence.
“There was basically no law on the matter, so we were looking at the real-life experience of how the industry has developed and justifying it from a policy perspective based on really basic black letter law principles.” The Court embraced the concept of pre-administration work (which has now become commonplace) and the Australian Restructuring Insolvency and Turnaround Association updated its rules around the independence of administrators as a result.
Lead litigation partner Leon Zwier is quoted in the article, describing Elyse as “one of the most extraordinary star lawyers that I’ve ever had the privilege of working with.”
“Elyse’s communication skills are exemplary,” he said. “She can communicate with lay clients, professional clients, experts, opponents and counsel in appropriate language. This is a rare ability.”
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