Senior Associate Promotions 

Bridget Bailey – Resource Management: Bridget advises on all aspects of resource management and local government law, with a particular focus on consenting infrastructure and renewable electricity projects under the RMA and fast-track processes. Bridget provides advice to public and private clients and has appeared in the Environment Court, High Court and local authority proceedings, as well as being appointed as Chair of an expert consenting panel under the Covid-19 fast track legislation. Bridget is a member of the Auckland District Law Society Environmental and Resource Management Law Committee and the RMLA. She is also a committee member of Mount Maunganui Playcentre. Bridget first joined the firm in 2012. In 2020 she spent 3 years as in-house legal counsel for Bay of Plenty Regional Council, before rejoining Holland Beckett in June 2023. 

Hester Sutherland-Stacey – Property and Commercial: Hester provides advice for developers, companies and individuals, with a focus on commercial property development. She advises on a range of property and commercial matters such as acquisitions and disposals of land and businesses, leasing, ownership structures, financing arrangements, and a range of commercial matters including terms of trade, construction contracts and service contracts. She also advises on all residential property matters from family homes to large scale subdivisions. Hester began her legal career working in employment law, civil and regulatory litigation. She joined Holland Beckett as a Solicitor in 2014 in the employment and civil litigation team, before transitioning into property and commercial law. Hester is a board member of ADAPT (Assisting Different Abilities Peoples Trust). 

Sophie Law – Employment and Family: Sophie advises on a broad range of employment law matters, both contentious and non-contentious. Sophie has particular experience advising on personal grievance claims, disciplinary and performance processes, restructures, negotiated exits, employee investigations, and Holidays Act compliance issues. This includes assisting clients with representation in dispute resolution processes such as mediation and the Employment Relations Authority. Sophie also assists employer clients to implement proper and thorough processes and is focussed on upskilling clients through delivering bespoke training workshops. To complement her expertise in employment law, Sophie also works alongside Holland Beckett's family law team advising on relationship property matters. Sophie began her legal career in London, including time at Magic Circle firm Slaughter and May. She joined Holland Beckett as a Solicitor in 2018. Sophie is a Trustee of He Kaupapa Kotahitanga Charitable Trust (HKKT).  

Jessica Fitzgerald – Corporate: Jess has significant experience in a range of complex corporate matters including M&A, private equity, commercial contracts, corporate governance, and general corporate advice/structuring. She provides advice for corporate clients as well as small to medium-sized businesses. She is a key team member for the firm's corporate clients, including Port of Tauranga, Robotics Plus and Oriens Capital. Jess first joined Holland Beckett in 2013, before moving to Vancouver, Canada, in 2016 where she worked in-house at a technology start-up primarily advising on the re-capitalisation of the company and technology contracts. Jess rejoined Holland Beckett in late 2018. 

Rachel Withington – Property and Commercial: Rachel is an experienced property and commercial lawyer, working with private clients and their related entries across all facets of property and commercial law. A multi-disciplinary lawyer, Rachel has expertise in residential conveyancing, along with commercial, rural and horticultural conveyancing and leasing. She advises on asset protection including trust establishment, trust management and trust wind ups, and estate and succession planning. She also advises in elder law, including occupation right agreements, residential care subsidies and loans, reverse mortgages and enduring powers of attorney. Rachel advises commercial clients on sale and purchase of businesses, share sale and purchases, shareholders agreements and has specialist experience acting for Foodstuffs Members on the purchase and sale of New World, Four Square and PAK'nSAVE stores throughout the country. Rachel began her legal career at Cooney Lees Morgan in 2014 where she worked for over 9 years, before joining Holland Beckett in early 2024. 

Associate Promotions 

Angus Hendry – Property and Commercial: Angus has a wide range of experience in property and commercial transactions, as well as trusts, charities, incorporated societies and estate planning. Angus is a trustee of the Bay of Plenty Youth Development Trust and drum corporal in the City of Tauranga Pipe Band. Angus joined Holland Beckett in 2022, after starting his legal career in Palmerston North.  

Emily Merrill – Property and Commercial: Emily has experience in a wide range of property and commercial matters including subdivisions, townhouse developments, sale and purchase of residential, commercial and rural properties, refinancing arrangements and commercial leasing. Emily also has specialist expertise in buying and selling of kiwifruit orchards and forestry assets as well as renewable energy, advising both landowners and developers on large scale solar projects throughout New Zealand. Emily began her legal career at Holland Beckett as a summer clerk in 2016, before joining the firm proper in 2018 upon completion of her studies. 

Rebecca Irvine – Property and Commercial: Rebecca is a property and commercial lawyer who advises on a broad range of matters, including developments and subdivisions, sale and purchase of residential and commercial property, sale and purchase of businesses, commercial contracts and leasing. Rebecca is particularly experienced in local government transactions and assists local and regional authorities with leasing, Public Works Act matters, commercial contracts, delegations, privacy and general property and commercial advice. Rebecca has a strong affinity for community-focused work, regularly advising charitable trusts and incorporated societies. She also contributes her time as a committee member of Bay of Plenty Symphonia Incorporated. Rebecca began her legal career in litigation at a Wellington firm before joining Holland Beckett in 2018, later gaining valuable in-house experience at Tauranga City Council before returning to Holland Beckett in January this year. 

Waiata Groot – Family: Waiata is in Holland Beckett’s family law team. She specialises across a broad range of family law matters including separation and division of relationship property (including complex Family Trust and Company structures), asset protection and Contracting Out Agreements, parenting and guardianship disputes, family violence (including urgent and non-urgent applications for protection orders), Family Court proceedings, estate claims under the Family Protection Act, applications for personal welfare and/or property orders relating to loss of capacity, and dissolution of marriage. Waiata began her legal career at Simpson Grierson in Auckland in 2016. She then moved to Cooney Lees Morgan in Tauranga for 3 years, before joining Holland Beckett in early 2024.