Tessa practises in commercial and public law, working with clients across a range of sectors, particularly in the mining, energy, infrastructure and banking and finance sectors.

Since coming to the Bar in 2020, Tessa has acted for both private sector and government clients in matters involving:

• Contract disputes, interpretation and enforcement
• Trade practices, unconscionable conduct, and misleading or deceptive conduct disputes
• Regulatory matters involving ASIC and the ACCC
• Restraints of trade
• Complex statutory interpretation in a variety of contexts
• Judicial review of government decisions involving: approvals under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth), planning, compulsory acquisition of land, grants and funding, and forestry
• Constitutional law
• Negligence
• Discrimination
• Alleged contraventions of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities

Tessa draws upon her experience as a Senior Associate in the commercial litigation group at Allens, where she worked on large-scale commercial, tax and regulatory proceedings, and as a Principal Solicitor in the public law team at the Victorian Government Solicitor’s Office, where she advised on all aspects of administrative decision-making, constitutional law and statutory interpretation. She has also practised as a solicitor with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in London and Tokyo and has worked in-house as a secondee to the regulatory and compliance team within ANZ Bank.

Tessa read with Emrys Nekvapil S.C..  Her senior mentor is Rowena Orr KC (Solicitor-General for Victoria).

Some of Tessa’s recent matters include:

• ACCC v SmileDirectClub LLC  VID375 of 2021 (with Nicholas De Young KC, reserved) —misleading or deceptive conduct
• Bob Brown Foundation Inc v Minister for the Environment (No 2) [2022] FCA (with Kathleen Foley S.C.) – application of the precautionary principle under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)
• Casey Jenkins Sh v Australia Council for the Arts VID187 of 2021 (with Emrys Nekvapil S.C. and Holly Jager, ongoing) — administrative law, discrimination, defamation, breach of contract, negligence
• Harding v Sutton S ECI 2021 03931 (with Rowena Orr KC (Solicitor-General for Victoria), Alistair Pound S.C., Sarala Fitzgerald and Thomas Wood, discontinued) — administrative law, alleged contraventions of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic)
• Mt Cottrell Properties Pty Ltd v Minister for Energy and Climate Change S ECI 2022 01774 (with Lisa Hannon KC, ongoing) — challenge to the compulsory acquisition of land
• Wilson v State of Victoria VID624 of 2021 (with Liam Brown (Crown Counsel for Victoria), ongoing) — constitutional law, administrative law
• Kinglake Friends of the Forest Inc v VicForests [2022] VSC 143 (with Emrys Nekvapil S.C.) — statutory interpretation; alleged non-compliance with the Sustainable Forests (Timber) Act 2004 (Vic)
• Tran v Commonwealth of Australia [2021] FCA 580 (with Geoffrey Kennett SC and Chris Tran) — lawfulness of detention of unlawful non-citizen under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth)
• Bob Brown Foundation Inc v Commonwealth of Australia [2021] FCAFC 5 (with Ron Merkel KC and Thomas Wood) — statutory interpretation; alleged contraventions of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)

*Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards legislation

Areas of Practice

Cases