A Senior Legal Counsel with Airservices Australia, Joanne Motbey (pictured) has been nominated for a corporate lawyer award by the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) Australia.
With a double degree in Law and Applied Science (Sports Media) from the University of Canberra, Ms Motbey also obtained her Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Australian National University in 2005.
Initially practising criminal and sports law, she moved to litigation and administrative law, then took the step into employment law.
“The people element interested me, and there is always something compelling – and usually surprising – happening,” Ms Motbey said.
However, she recognises that employment law compliance can be challenging in an era of continually evolving legislation.
“While I am one for taking on the right battle, there are some issues which the business would benefit from settling early, to avoid risks at hearing — these risks being financial, reputational or in relation to creating a precedent,” Ms Motbey said.
“My role here is also to reassure managers to ensure staff remain engaged and willing to take on a difficult issue the next time it happens.”
Today she is part of an elite set of lawyers who are recognised for their dedication in their line of work.
To nominate for the award Ms Motbey had to submit testimonials from her superiors at Airservices Australia highlighting the impact she has had on the organisation.
The ACC Australia Corporate Lawyers Awards are open to all persons with legal qualifications who are employed by corporate, Government or semi-Government bodies, including statutory corporations, in Australia.
The awards recognise the highest standards in the delivery of in-house legal services within Australia with Ms Motbey being one of three to be nominated for the title.
The award winners will be announced on 14 November.
