Lenny is a leading Public Law solicitor, whose expertise in government, administrative law and refugee law has been recognised by Legal 500 and Best Lawyers for the past 10 years.
Lenny was a partner at DLA Piper for 15 years until 2019, where he led their Government and Administrative Law team. He was subsequently a partner at Mills Oakley until joining Keypoint Law.
Lenny has acted for and advised many Commonwealth departments and agencies, including the Department of Home Affairs (immigration), the Australian Taxation Office, Services Australia, the Department of Health, the Therapeutic Goods Administration, the Australian Trade and Investment Commission, the Migration Agents Registration Authority and the National Disability Insurance Agency.
His work covers both advisory and litigation; and in many cases, Lenny undertakes the advocacy work in Tribunals and Courts in place of counsel from the private bar.
Lenny’s expertise in refugee and humanitarian law also underpins an extensive international pro bono practice. He has advised (and is an active member of) the Statelessness Network Asia Pacific and the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network.
Separate to his legal qualifications, Lenny has tertiary IT qualifications and experience in business process analysis. To this end, he has implemented technology-based solutions for clients in workflow processing and knowledge management.
Lenny is based in Melbourne, Australia.
Expertise
Lenny’s areas of expertise include:
- Immigration law
- Administrative law
- Government law
- Licensing and registration
- Advocacy before Courts and Tribunals
Experience
Examples of Lenny’s work include:
- acting for the Australian Trade and Investment Commission as their sole advocate before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal and Federal Court, in relation to appeals under the Export Market Development Grants Act 1977 (Cth);
- litigating in the Federal Circuit Court, Federal Court and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in relation to appeals under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) and the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth);
- advising clients on Freedom of Information issues and Privacy law, including on appeals from decisions of the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner; and
- defending licensing and registration decisions in various Tribunals where persons have been deemed not fit and proper to be registered in their chosen profession.
Examples of Lenny’s recent international pro bono work includes:
- Leading a team of lawyers in a constitutional case in the Supreme Court of India challenging the validity of discriminatory laws enacted in the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 (India) and the Foreigners Tribunal in the Indian state of Assam.
- Representing various NGO’s at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ High Level Segment on Statelessness held in Geneva in October 2019 and currently providing assistance in refugee camps in relation to the coronavirus pandemic.
- Conducting a civil litigation course in the University of the South Pacific in Vanuatu in 2019 in relation to Drafting Pleadings and Witness statements.
Recognition
Lenny has been recognised for his government, administrative law and refugee law expertise for the last ten years in rankings conducted by Chambers and the AFR’s Best Lawyers, listing pre-eminent practitioners in their respective fields.
Lenny’s tertiary and professional qualifications include:
- Bachelor of Science (majoring in Computing/Statistics), Macquarie University (1985)
- Bachelor of Laws, Australian National University (1989)
- Admitted as a Barrister/Solicitor, Supreme Court of New South Wales (1990)
- Admitted as a Legal Practitioner, Supreme Court of Australian Capital Territory (2000)
- Admitted as a Solicitor, Supreme Court of South Australia (2004)
- Entered on High Court Roll of Practitioners (2000)
Career
2021 (April) – current | Keypoint Law | Consulting Principal |
2020-2021 | Mills Oakley | Partner |
2004-2019 | DLA Piper | Partner |
2000-2004 | Sparke Helmore | Special Counsel |
1999-2000 | Migration Review Tribunal | Principal Legal Officer |
1995-1999 | Department of Immigration | Director Refugee Law |
1990-1995 | Department of Immigration | Director Litigation |
1987-1989 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | Computer Systems Officer |
1985-1987 | Australian Government Retirement Benefits Office | Computer Systems Officer |