WA: “Wine & Whiteboard” – issues facing in house teams

Facilitator:

Paul Sartori, Partner of Piper Alderman

Paul is a corporate and commercial lawyer with over 20 years of expertise and experience in public and private mergers and acquisitions, equity capital markets, shareholder investor arrangements and general corporate advisory.

Paul is a leading corporate adviser to a wide range of local listed and unlisted companies and businesses, also acting as General Counsel for a range of clients.

Having worked extensively in both Perth and London, Paul is highly regarded with substantial local and international experience with a multidisciplinary practice background providing end-to-end client services. Paul has advised on and managed a wide range of international and domestic corporate transactions across many different industry sectors, including deal structuring, due diligence, document preparation and contract negotiation.

Paul is committed to outstanding client service and building long term client relationships, taking the time to understand a client’s business to deliver solutions that serve commercial and financial goals.

Panel:

Jo Quinn, Director and General Counsel, Strategic and Governance Services of Edith Cowan University

Jo is the General Counsel, University Secretary and Director of Strategic and Governance Services at Edith Cowan University. In that role, Jo leads a broad team of legal and compliance, risk management, corporate and academic governance, quality assurance, internal audit, and strategic planning professionals. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from UWA and a Bachelor of Laws from Murdoch University, is an accredited mediator and has at various times tutored and lectured in law at the University of Notre Dame (WA), Curtin University and Murdoch University. Jo commenced her legal career at Freehills in Perth, before moving to the UK for nearly 10 years where was a senior associate in the corporate team at Slaughter and May, and then Director and Legal Counsel with Citigroup.   Upon her return to Perth, Jo worked as Legal Counsel with mining contractor, Barminco Limited, before joining ECU. Jo is a member of the AICD, ACC, Law Society of Western Australia, and the Society of University Lawyers (Australia). As well as serving as a director of Tennis West and ECU Accommodation Holdings Pty Ltd, Jo also sits on various committees and advisory boards in the higher education sector.

Christian Bauer – General Manager Legal (Retail) Wesfarmers

Christian joined Wesfarmers in 2000 in the position of Legal Counsel and in 2020 was appointed General Manager Legal (Retail), overseeing the legal function across (and managing the legal teams embedded in) Wesfarmers’ retail businesses including Bunnings, Officeworks, Catch, Target, Kmart and API. In 2021 Christian was given the added role of managing the Wesfarmers Corporate & Industrials legal team. Christian works primarily in mergers and acquisitions, general commercial, and data privacy/governance.
Prior to joining Wesfarmers, Christian practised law at Clayton Utz in areas including corporate mergers and acquisitions, general commercial, insolvency and property.
Christian holds Bachelor of Laws degree from The University of Western Australia and was admitted to practice as a barrister and solicitor in 1995. 
In his spare time Christian is involved in cricket administration. He is a director of the WACA, the Chairman of WA Premier Cricket and even a junior coach.
 

Paul Volich, Managing Counsel - Australia / Company Secretary of Alcoa

Paul Volich holds the dual roles of Managing Counsel and Company Secretary with Alcoa of Australia Limited where he is responsible for providing high quality, strategic and efficient legal services and ensuring the proper governance of Alcoa of Australia Limited and its Australian holding company and subsidiaries. Alcoa has been investing in Australia for 58 years and its Australian operations represent one of the world’s largest integrated bauxite mining, alumina refining and aluminium smelting systems operating two bauxite mines, three alumina refineries, one aluminium smelter and two dedicated port facilities. Alcoa is the largest industrial user of gas in Australia, consumes 10% of Victoria’s electricity and supports 4,400 direct jobs.

Paul is a senior legal practitioner and accountant with diverse and international legal and commercial experience across in-house and private practice environments spanning mining, energy, commodities, compliance, union negotiations, intellectual property, major projects, commercial agreements, and mergers & acquisitions. 
 
Paul is a Barrister and Solicitor of the High and Federal Courts of Australia and the Supreme Court of Western Australia and holds a Master of Business Administration, Master of Law (Applied Law), Bachelor of Law, Certified Practicing Accountant and Bachelor of Business.

Shane Entriken, Partner of Piper Alderman

Shane has over 25 years of experience as a lawyer in private practice and as a business executive, having held a number of senior roles across different commodities in the global mining and energy sector.

Shane is a trusted advisor to the C Suite and boards and plays the role of General Counsel for a number of significant clients. He acts for clients in the areas of employment law, workplace health and safety, regulatory prosecutions, privacy, board governance and compliance, contract disputes and litigation in courts and tribunals. Shane has extensive employment and industrial law experience, including major organisational change as well as reviewing executive remuneration schemes

Shane is an accomplished company director, currently serving on the board of Crime Stoppers Western Australia. He is a recent director of a cattle production business and was Chair of a UCITS listed investment fund. He designed and taught at Murdoch University the unit Legal Strategy in Organisations and is the co-author of a book on the management of FIFO operations in mining. Shane is a regular speaker, including for the post graduate programs at the Governance Institute of Australia.