(Brisbane based)
Rachel holds a Bachelor of Arts (Governance and Public Policy; English) and a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from the University of Queensland. She was admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Queensland in 2013 and the High Court of Australia in 2014.
Rachel is part of our not-for-profit and estate teams. She brings a wealth of experience and depth with her having worked in the private sector, as well as in governance for a disability and aged care services provider and in the community legal sector in tribunal advocacy. Rachel is driven by a desire to help people translate their deepest values and passions into action through the law, and create legacies for future generations. Accordingly, she has an interest in all areas of law to do with charity and altruism, disability, mental health, guardianship, ageing well, and succession.
When not working on legal matters, you will find Rachel enjoying poetry, fantasy fiction, long walks in green places and spending time with her young family.
- Structuring and restructuring of not-for-profits, including drafting constitutions of companies limited by guarantee and incorporated associations.
- Complex applications for charitable tax concessions to the ACNC and state regulators.
- Compliance advice on the Corporations Act 2001, Associations Incorporation Act 1981 and for unincorporated associations and Public and Private Ancillary Funds.
- Advising on fundraising and commercial activities as methods of income generation, including licensing applications, Wills bequests, DGR compliance for gifting programs and advice on whether commercial activities are within charitable purposes.
- Drafting Wills and Enduring Powers of Attorney, including catering for beneficiaries to retain the Disability Support Pension, special disability trusts, testamentary discretionary trusts and managing expected family law issues.
- Family trust and SMSF succession planning.
- Grants of Probate and Letters of Administration, and estate administration, including negotiating debt waiver and superannuation insurance claims.
- Defence and initiation of family provision claims.
- Advising on QCAT guardianship and administration matters and Office of the Public Guardian investigations.
- Advising on NDIS service agreements with clients with capacity issues.
- Representation of clients in Treatment Authority and Forensic Order matters before the Mental Health Review Tribunal.
- Advising on the Mental Health Act 2016 (Qld), health service complaints and information privacy.
- Advising on the application of the Human Rights Act 2019 (Qld) to mental health contexts.
- Advice on managing legal aspects of lifestyle needs and family asset distribution connected with ageing or disability, including Enduring Powers of Attorney, Advance Health Directives, advance care planning, and QCAT applications for guardianship and administration orders or reviews.
- Assisting aged care clinical quality teams to prepare responses to significant complaints from clients and families and inquiries from regulators.
- Training aged care and community services managers in the law to do with Enduring Powers of Attorney, capacity and decision making.
