Welcome to This Is Us – a series dedicated to sharing the stories of the incredible people that make up Hamilton Locke.
Through these stories, we celebrate the unique experiences, perspectives, and voices that make up our firm.
Each edition offers a glimpse into the lives of our colleagues – revealing a little bit more about what makes them tick, their journey in law, and how they found themselves at Hamilton Locke.
Get to know Mairead – Special Counsel, Banking & Finance
For our inaugural edition, we feature Mairead Finn, Special Counsel in our Banking and Finance team. Mairead is not only an experienced finance lawyer with a knack for solving complex problems, but she is also a true embodiment of our core values. With significant international experience, including stints in Dublin, London and Lisbon, Mairead brings a global perspective to her work. Her expertise in leveraged finance, acquisition finance and general corporate finance has made her a trusted advisor to clients seeking strategic outcomes.
Beyond her professional achievements, Mairead is known for her dedication to mentoring younger lawyers, fostering a supportive environment and advocating for diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Her journey from Dublin to Perth is marked by her approach to problem-solving and her ability to navigate complex legal landscapes make her an invaluable member of our team.
Tell us about your career journey to date.
I started my legal career as a trainee with Arthur Cox, a corporate law firm in Dublin, in 2013.
The traineeship is structured slightly differently in Ireland and we had mandatory rotations to complete, of which, banking and finance was one. I decided to “get Banking out of the way” early as I was dead set on being a litigator. I realised pretty quickly that the transactional nature of banking and finance suited me and there was a buzz from the intensity of the deals. At the time Ireland was still reeling from the impact of the GFC so banking and finance lawyers were exceptionally busy with large-scale loan sales and restructures of entire banks. A lot of the deals we were working on were front page news so, suffice to say, I was hooked.
During my traineeship, I got the opportunity to do a rotation at the firm’s London office which, on reflection, ignited my interest in working overseas. Later on, after settling in the Banking team, I was lucky enough to do an exchange with an affiliate law firm in Lisbon, Vieira De Almedia, where I got to work with their exceptional banking and finance team. Thinking back to those lawyers doing full commercial transactions across 3, and sometimes 4, languages still impresses me to this day.
Why did you move to Australia and what brought you to Perth?
Like most Irish people, the weather and lifestyle of Australia always appealed to me but I was worried I had left it too late after already starting in my career. However, Australian law firms were actively recruiting and Irish lawyers perform really well in this market given the similarities between the jurisdictions. I joined a Top Tier firm in Sydney and worked there for 3 and a half years before moving across with the same firm to their Perth office.
Perth, my fifth (and final!) city to live and practice law in, was a bit of an accident. I came across temporarily during COVID and decided to stay as WA was COVID free and had no lockdowns at the time. I soon got used to daily sunshine, being able to live within ten minutes of the city in one direction and 10 minutes to the beach on the other side.
A picture says a thousand words so above is a photo of the view on my walk last night.
What attracted you to Hamilton Locke?
I heard nothing but great things from people I knew who had joined Hamilton Locke and liked their fresh approach to providing legal services. The fact that they prioritised the people experience of their staff aligned with my values and my vision for where I wanted to build my career.
When the opportunity arose to help set up the Perth Banking and Finance practice under the guidance of Zina Edwards and alongside the existing Perth Partners, it was one I just could not turn down.
How important is it to have other women visible at the management level?
Female representation in the legal industry has significantly increased and more females are graduating from law schools, accepting places in graduate programs, and qualifying as lawyers than ever before. However, the female representation at entry-level roles has not yet translated to the same balance at management and partnership levels.
We need to have representation and continue to push for representation, at senior levels to inspire future female leaders to achieve their full potential and leverage from the diverse perspectives of women within the organisation.
You’re on the diversity & inclusion committee, why do you think diversity and inclusion is important?
I’m from a generation where, thanks to so many people before me, I had very few barriers to entering this profession and I’m so grateful for that. That is a privilege not everybody has enjoyed and I feel a responsibility to ensure that I use this to make sure other people enjoy the same experience in their careers.
While the benefits of having a truly diverse and inclusive workplace are well established, I’m particularly proud of the holistic approach that Hamilton Locke applies to diversity. In addition to focusing on the unique challenges our staff face on the basis of their gender, sexual orientation, and cultural background and beliefs, which remain a priority, an emphasis is also placed on supporting and championing our neurodivergent colleagues and those facing additional hurdles due workplace accessibility, their roles as caregivers or diverse socioeconomic backgrounds.
What do you think the legal industry can do to improve diversity & inclusion?
The almost universal ability to work flexibly has certainly helped those who have family or caregiving responsibilities to balance their obligations but it is becoming a double-edged sword. Firms, employers, and indeed clients need to be cognisant of encroaching on staff out of hours. The right to switch off is very topical for good reason. While long hours are often required in our profession, being accessible 24/7 is leading to stress, burn-out and mental health concerns. Clear policies should be implemented regarding communication expectations and, unless there are urgent matters closing or impending deadlines, employees should not be expected to respond to work-related messages out of hours.
As a mentor, what advice would you give to your mentees?
Being a mentor has been a source of great enjoyment and fulfillment for me. My main advice to mentees is that the only person who will truly care about your career is you. Of course, there will be people to help and support but you have to hold yourself accountable for where you want to be and how you are going to get there. Nobody else is going to push you if you don’t push yourself.
