Law Advisory Board
The Law Advisory Board provides high level strategic advice to the Faculty of Law on directions, development and opportunities in the legal and business environments. It provides a strategic overview, advice and industry input regarding: course development and accreditation, links to the external stakeholders, promotion of the Faculty to enhance its reputation, development of the alumni community and advancement of the Faculty’s priorities through fundraising activities.
The Law Advisory Board members include representatives from the legal, government and business communities, as well as faculty management.
Members
Betty Ivanoff - Chair
Betty is corporate lawyer and executive with over 20 years’ experience in ASX listed companies and international organisations.
On 21 June 2021 Betty joined Crown Resorts Limited as Group General Counsel.
Previously, Betty was Group Director – Legal & Corporate Affairs for Coca-Cola Amatil Limited from 2016, leading the legal, governance and corporate affairs teams through until the takeover by scheme of the company which completed in May 2021.
Betty was the Group General Counsel and Company Secretary for GrainCorp Limited from 2008 to 2016 and built the first legal and compliance team for the company, leading them through a period of vast growth and diversity, spanning many geographies.
Betty previously held corporate counsel positions with companies including CSR Limited, Walter Constructions and Sinclair Knight Merz.
Betty is an active member of the International Bar Association (IBA), an ExCo member of the GC100 - Australian Corporate Counsel (ACC) and was previously a board director of Women’s Community Shelters.
Geoff Lloyd
Geoff has over 20 years’ experience in the financial services industry. He was formerly the CEO of MLC Wealth and was responsible for over 1,200 financial advisors, Australia's largest retail super fund and Asset Management, and led MLC Wealth towards separation from the National Australia Bank (NAB). Prior to MLC Wealth, he was CEO and Managing Director of Perpetual Limited for six years, where his senior leadership team successfully delivered Perpetual's strategy designed to simplify, refocus and grow the company.
Geoff has held a number of senior roles at BT Financial Group and St George's Wealth Management business including Group Executive, Wealth, General Manager, Advice and Private Banking and Chief Legal Counsel.
He is Deputy Chair of the Financial Services Council, an Advisory Board member of The Big Issue, and a Patron of both the Financial Industry Community Aid Program (FICAP) and the Emerge Foundation.
Geoff has a Masters of Law (Distinction) from the University of Technology Sydney and has completed the Harvard University Advanced Management Program.
Danny Arraj
Managing Partner, Blackstone Waterhouse
With over 20 years of experience in property and construction law, Danny is a leading Australian planning lawyer who has written and lectured extensively on getting developments through Council, which includes publishing a textbook on the topic. He’s known for being practical and commercially focused, as well as for his ability to steer a project from conception and planning to completion. He is a specialist advocate in the Land and Environment Court and associated jurisdictions, and is currently advising in relation to a number of major projects.
Danny is a Managing Partner of Blackstone Waterhouse – a specialist planning, property and construction firm which acts for major developers and head contractors in projects across Australia. Blackstone Waterhouse Lawyers were recognised for their expertise in Construction & Infrastructure in the 2018 Asia Pacific Legal 500 legal directory survey, which is widely considered the world’s largest independent referral guide for legal services.
Danny holds a Bachelor of Laws (UTS) and a Bachelor of Arts (UNSW), and is a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of NSW.
Marcus Bezzi
Executive General Manager, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
Marcus has been an Executive General Manager at the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) since early 2009. He is responsible for the ACCC’s Specialized Enforcement & Advocacy Division; this division enforces cartel laws, manages the ACCC’s International engagement, coordinates the ACCC advocacy network and runs the ACCC intelligence unit. It also has responsibility for the ACCC’s work in units established to focus on substantial lessening of competition, agriculture, commercial construction and financial services.
Marcus has a background as a government and private sector lawyer. He was General Counsel at the ACMA for three years and a Senior Executive Lawyer at the Australian Government Solicitor for ten years.
Margaret Cai
Law Graduate – Banking and Finance, King & Wood Mallesons
Margaret serves a two-year term as the Board’s Graduate Member. She graduated from UTS in 2020 with a combined Bachelor of Communications and Law, receiving the university medal in Law. During her time at university, she also served as the President of the Australian Law Students’ Association.
Margaret is currently a Law Graduate in Banking and Finance at King & Wood Mallesons.
Professor Anita Stuhmcke
Justin Moses
Legal Counsel, AIME Mentoring
Justin has been an active participant in the evolution of the Australian in-house legal sector since joining it as graduate lawyer in 1987. Over the ensuing decades, Justin has amassed deep experience in the leadership of legal teams and change management in areas as diverse as team culture, engagement, high-performance, efficiency, innovation, technology and wellbeing.
Justin is currently the in-House Lawyer/Legal Counsel for AIME Mentoring, an indigenous not-for-profit corporation focused on building mentoring bridges between universities and schools to help in overcoming educational inequality.
Justin is a true believer in the power of industry-based conversations, and is a member of ACC Australia, Justice Connect and the AICD. He is a member of the NSW Law Society’s In-House Corporate Lawyers Committee; the ACC NSW Division Executive Committee, and is an Adjunct Professional Fellow of UTS Faculty of Law.
Justin participates in mentoring programs for young professionals through ACC Australia, UTS Faculty of Law, the NSW Law Society and the Westpac Foundation.
Stephanie Purcell
Solicitor, Herbert Smith Freehills
Stephanie serves the Board on a two-year term as the Graduate Member. She graduated in 2017 with First Class Honours in Law and Bachelor of Business. She has also completed the Australian Institute of Company Director’s governance course.
As a Solicitor at Herbert Smith Freehills, Stephanie advises government and private sector clients on major infrastructure, construction and general commercial transactions, with a particular focus on public private partnerships and complex government procurements. Prior to working at HSF, Stephanie was Tipstaff to the Honourable Justice Hammerschlag and the Honourable Justice Bergin, Chief Judge in Equity of the Supreme Court of NSW.
Professor Robynne Quiggin
Associate Dean, Indigenous Leadership and Engagement
Michael Vrisakis
Partner, Herbert Smith Freehills
Michael has over 30 years’ experience in financial services. Michael’s primary area of focus and expertise is on the regulation of retail financial services, insurance, superannuation, platforms and products and, in particular, strategic regulatory advice and investigations. He is a recognised expert in the area of non-contentious regulation and is regularly nominated a leading practitioner in this space and quoted in the financial press.
Michael was most recently named as a leading practitioner in the area of regulation in Best Lawyers 2015 and Best Superannuation Lawyer in 2014, as well as being awarded Industry Excellence Awards by the Financial Services Council in 2014 and 2016 for outstanding contributions to the financial services industry in Australia. Michael was also a finalist for the inaugural Lawyers Weekly Partner of the Year awards in 2016. In 2017, Acritas Stars - an independent report commissioned by a global panel of General Counsels – listed Michael as one of 23 ‘stand-out’ lawyers globally.
Michael is widely recognised as a leader in his field and is regularly at the forefront of debating and developing new law. His advice is routinely sought in relation to strategic management of regulatory matters, including liaising with the lead Australian financial services regulators APRA and ASIC.
