New Zealand Law Society - Speakers and panellists
Jordan Neville is an employed barrister with Amy Lake Barrister at Riverlands Chambers based in Christchurch. Having been in practice for just over six years in family and criminal law, Jordan started out his career in a Community Law Centre before working at a mid-sized law firm followed by becoming an employed barrister in March 2022.
Jordan has recently stepped back as the Convenor for the New Lawyers Committee of Canterbury-Westland Branch of the Law Society and recently became a member of the Canterbury-Westland Branch Council. He is also a committee member of the National New Lawyers Group and the Family Courts Association.
Jordan has been actively involved with initiatives aimed at empowering and supporting new lawyers, including professional development and social events within the Canterbury region with a particular goal of connecting new lawyers. With opportunities within the legal profession becoming ever more varied, Jordan along with the New Lawyers Committee for Canterbury-Westland have worked towards the Conference along with many other events aimed towards empowering and supporting new lawyers in their individual journeys.
Opening Keynote - Rez Gardi MNZM
Rez Gardi MNZM is an international human rights lawyer, award-winning advocate, and trailblazer in the global refugee leadership movement. Born in a refugee camp in Pakistan after her Kurdish family fled genocide, Rez’s journey from statelessness to the global changemaker is a powerful story of resilience, justice, and leadership.
Arriving in New Zealand with nothing, Rez sought to use her difficult start in life as motivation to succeed, becoming New Zealand's first Kurdish female lawyer. She graduated as a Fulbright Scholar with a Master of Laws from Harvard Law School, becoming the first Kurd in history to graduate from Harvard Law.
Rez is the Co-Managing Director of R-SEAT (Refugees Seeking Equal Access at the Table), the only global refugee-led organisation working to strengthen the role of refugees in international decision-making. She has helped lead refugee participation at high-level policy forums, including the United Nations General Assembly, the Global Refugee Forum, and the Human Rights Council.
She is also the Co-Director of the Centre for Asia Pacific Refugee Studies (CAPRS) at the University of Auckland, a research hub responding to the complex challenges of conflict and climate-induced displacement in the Asia Pacific region.
Rez’s work spans the courtroom to the frontlines. She has worked on the ground across conflict zones and humanitarian settings—from documenting war crimes committed by ISIS against the Yezidi people on the Iraq–Syria border, to leading accountability efforts for grave violations against children across South Sudan, Somalia, Bangladesh, Lebanon, and Sri Lanka. She has contributed to major international litigation, including a landmark case that found multinational banana company Chiquita liable for financing a Colombian paramilitary group responsible for widespread human rights abuses and killings. Rez previously worked for the New Zealand Human Rights Commission and has lectured on international law and human rights. Her legal and policy expertise—alongside her lived experience—continues to shape global conversations around justice, forced displacement, and survivor-led solutions.
In 2017, she founded Empower Youth Trust, a refugee-youth-led organisation that began in New Zealand and now works globally—including in refugee camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq—to foster education equity and leadership for young people from refugee backgrounds. Empower has supported over 10,000 refugee youth through mentorship, workshops, and advocacy.
In 2025, Rez was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to human rights and refugees. She was named Young New Zealander of the Year in 2017 and has received numerous accolades, including being recognised as one of New Zealand’s Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers in 2021.
She received the Outstanding Youth Delegate Award at the UN Youth Assembly in 2019, the Global Impact Award in 2020, was named a Peace Ambassador by the European Commission in 2021, and in 2022, was recognised as a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Global Goalkeeper for her leadership in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. She is also a Vital Voices Global Fellow, an Eisenhower Youth Fellow, and a finalist for the Echoing Green Fellowship.
An inspiring speaker, Rez has addressed audiences around the world—from the United Nations in Geneva and New York to grassroots workshops in refugee camps in Kenya and Uganda. Whether speaking to world leaders or young changemakers, Rez delivers bold, authentic insights on inclusion, leadership, justice, and hope. Her story not only uplifts, but challenges audiences to think differently about inclusion, identity, and what it means to lead.
Dr Sarah Anticich is a clinical psychologist with a PhD in Psychology from the University of Queensland, where her doctoral research focused on building emotional resilience and preventing anxiety in children and adolescents. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Psychology, a Master of Science with First Class Honours, a Bachelor of Science, and a First Class Honours degree in Child and Famqily Psychology.
Dr Anticich brings over two decades of interdisciplinary experience spanning healthcare, education, justice, sport, insurance, and corporate sectors. Her clinical expertise includes the assessment and treatment of trauma, emotional dysregulation, executive dysfunction, and ADHD. She is an approved ACC Sensitive Claims provider and co-founder of Studio Mindspace, a specialised intervention programme for adult ADHD based on Russell Barkley’s executive functioning model.
In addition to her clinical work, Dr Anticich consults to legal professionals, executive leaders, and organisations on psychological safety, sustainable performance, and emotional intelligence through her Executive Frame model. Her approach integrates clinical science, developmental psychology, and organisational frameworks to support both individual and systemic transformation.
Known for her clarity, warmth, and evidence-informed practice, Dr Anticich is committed to bridging science and strategy to create meaningful, real-world outcomes across therapeutic, educational, and leadership settings.
Derek Roth-Biester, Director, Criterion Law
Derek is the founder of Criterion Law, a boutique technology and corporate / commercial law firm based in Queenstown. His technology practice ranges from advising on technology procurement to data privacy issues, digital assets and artificial intelligence, where he consults with lawyers and firms starting out on their AI journey. He also helps tech startups with raising capital, from seed funding through to VC, international expansion and exit.
Derek’s journey to Criterion started in the UK with Gowling WLG and Merrill Lynch, followed by 12 years in Hong Kong with international firms Sidley Austin and Pinsent Masons, and four years at offshore firms in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. He was a partner at Meredith Connell in Auckland from 2017 to 2019 and at Anderson Lloyd in Queenstown from 2019 to 2024.
He is recognised as a ‘leading individual’ for New Zealand TMT in the most recent edition of the Legal 500.
Sam Lindsay and Sarah Wilson - Legal Search Partner, Chisholm Clarke
Sam Lindsay
Sam Lindsay is known for his strategic and thoughtful approach to helping lawyers. With a focus on understanding each lawyer’s unique skills, aspirations and personality, he offers measured advice to help find suitable opportunities, evaluate workplaces and make the right decisions. His decade of experience, combined with his dedication to search, makes him a trusted advisor committed to delivering great outcomes. Sam is easygoing, reliable and manages communication and expectations openly for all parties.
Sarah Wilson
Sarah is a Director at Chisholm Clarke and takes a practical, people-first approach to legal search. She works closely with lawyers to support their career moves, offering clear advice and a steady hand throughout the process. Sarah brings warmth and energy to her work, making it easy for lawyers to feel heard and supported. With strong legal market knowledge and a genuine interest in people, she helps lawyers take the next step with clarity and confidence.
Together, Sam and Sarah lead Chisholm Clarke with a shared focus on strong relationships, honest conversations, and long-term outcomes. They also co-host the What a Lawyer podcast, where they speak with leading lawyers about their career journeys, insights, and the state of the profession. In addition to search, they support lawyers with salary and market advice, performance reviews, and career planning beyond the job hunt.
Joe Consedine - Co-founder, Mobilise – Inclusive Leadership and Allyship
Joe is one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s leading voices on inclusion. A highly engaging and in-demand speaker and consultant to a range of organisations and industries in New Zealand and globally, Joe has a unique ability to unite audiences around why inclusion is such a critical capability for individuals and organisations to adopt to survive and thrive in a diverse and complex future of work.
Joe is a former Director of Champions for Change with Global Women where he worked with New Zealand’s leading 80 Chief Executives and Board Chairs on scaled Diversity Equity and Inclusion strategies for Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Prior to Champions for Change Joe was the New Zealand General Manger for Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand where he led the development of the accounting profession’s first ever inclusion strategy, developed a playbook on the gender pay gap with a reach of over 850k and was recognised by the NZ Minister for Women.
Joe is also the co-founder of Mobilise – New Zealand’s first dedicated leadership development and allyship program specifically for men.
Closing Keynote - Nigel Hampton CNZM, OBE, KC
Nigel Hampton KC has conducted countless homicide trials and is one of New Zealand’s most respected defence lawyers. He has been recognised publicly with an OBE and as a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the law.
From topping his law graduate class at the University of Canterbury in 1964, Hampton’s 60-year career has seen him chair the New Zealand Law Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal, become the first Disciplinary Commissioner of Counsel at the International Criminal Court in 2007, and serve as Chief Justice of the Kingdom of Tonga. He has been involved in numerous boards and tribunals for schools, law related organisations, museums and rugby.
In recent years he has represented families of victims in the collapse of the Christchurch CTV building during the 2011 earthquake; the miners' union in the Pike River coal mine disaster inquiry and later some of the victims’ families in judicial review proceedings; and families of those killed in the Christchurch mosques' shootings.
Gemma Wragg - Head of Strategic People Development
As Head of Strategic People Development at Tavendale + Partners, Gemma is the author of the firm’s industry-leading people development program, designed to elevate early performance and fast-track career progression. She is also a key member of the Tavendale + Partners leadership team.
Stepping into this new role, Gemma brings a unique blend of experience as a former lawyer and the previous CEO of Tavendale + Partners. Her deep understanding of both law as a vocation and law as a business allows her to drive people-focused initiatives and outcomes for our people. Her passion for culture, talent development, and mentoring young professionals plays a pivotal role in our continued evolution as a firm.
Since joining Tavendale + Partners in 2018 as a solicitor, Gemma has been instrumental in our growth and success. Appointed CEO in 2021, Gemma championed the firm through a period of significant expansion.
In recognition of her strategic vision and commitment to people, Gemma received the Australasian Legal Practice Management Association’s Future Leader Award in 2022 – a testament to her leadership and impact within the profession.
Jeremy Johnson - Barrister and Arbitrator
Jeremy is one of New Zealand’s leading barristers, with expertise in private wealth, relationship property, equity and trusts, arbitration, and commercial law. He acts in cases across New Zealand and the Asia-Pacific, regularly appearing as lead counsel in courts and arbitral tribunals. Known for his discretion and skill, Jeremy is highly regarded for his work with high-profile individuals and families, particularly in cross-border private wealth matters.
Jeremy has received numerous accolades, including rankings in The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2019, 2024) and Chambers Asia-Pacific (2022–2025), where he is ranked Band 1 for 2025. He is based at Bankside Chambers in Auckland and Singapore and is registered with the Singapore International Commercial Court. He serves on the Advisory Board of the International Trust Arbitration Organisation and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), holding an Advanced Certificate in Trust Disputes, in which he placed first globally.
A Fellow of the Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand and the International Academy of Family Lawyers, Jeremy also contributes to the community as Chancellor of the Diocese of Waiapu and Chair of Christ’s College. He was awarded the King’s Service Medal in 2025 for his community service.