Our People

Professional Qualifications:

• Master of Laws (University of Technology, Sydney), majoring in dispute resolution.
• Bachelor of Laws (University of New South Wales)
• Bachelor of Arts (University of New South Wales)
• Member, Law Society of New South Wales
• Solicitor, Supreme Court of New South Wales
• Solicitor, High Court of Australia

Background and Experience

Kathy was admitted to practice in July 1978. Since her admission Kathy has had experienced in many fields of the law. Kathy initially worked as a lawyer in one of the largest banking institutions in Australia. She then commenced her own legal practice while raising her first 2 sons. Kathy then worked in the field of workers compensation and work relating to claims by members of the Stolen Generation while raising her then family of 4 children before re-entering traditional legal practice in a suburban firm in her local Northern Beaches area. Kathy was then approached by the College of Law to work as a lecturer, lecturing to qualified lawyers who were undertaking the Master of Applied Law in Family Law. After some years as a lecturer, Kathy commenced work as a family lawyer and commercial litigation lawyer with 2 firms. In June 2020 Kathy commenced her own firm and in November 2022 joined Watts McCray as a consultant.

Kathy has enjoyed working as a lawyer on a wide range of matters. Her experience outside of family law includes commercial matters involving the buying and selling of businesses and partnership and shareholders disputes; family provision claims in the Supreme Court, either acting for the claimants seeking a share in the estate or acting for the executor resisting a claim; drafting Wills and Powers of Attorneys and Guardianships; assisting clients’ in applications filed with the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal; acting for clients in disputes over contracts; misleading and deceptive conduct claims; and for defendants in apprehended domestic violence orders. Kathy has also had some experience in the Children’s Court.

Kathy’s experience in family law matters includes drafting financial agreements and defending the validity of financial agreements, settling property disputes by way of consent orders or litigation; parenting disputes settled by consent orders or litigation; drafting child support agreements; and drafting surrogacy agreements and assisting in the legal process of adoption.

As a practitioner of a certain age, Kathy has not only acquired substantial knowledge and experience of family law matters but developed what she considers is a deep understanding of the needs of clients and the emotional costs to clients if matters are not settled in the most cost effective and least acrimonious way possible.

Kathy is acutely aware that for many clients their family law matter, whether it be a property dispute, a parenting dispute or a combination of both, is the first time they have interacted with a lawyer and the prospect of being involved in a long-running dispute is a dauting one for them. Kathy strives to minimise the stress and costs to a client when faces with a dispute. Kathy considers that a rapport with a client is an essential tool in assisting a client achieve the client’s aims.

Kathy has lived on the northern beaches of Sydney for 38 years. Kathy’s passion, outside her family and friends, is travelling. Her personal motto is “live the moment” and her motto to clients is “It will be alright in the end and if it is not alright now it is not the end.”