LIFE IN A NATIONAL LAW FIRM: CORRS CHAMBERS WESTGARTH NICK ELLERY Partner, Workplace Relations
with a young, up-and-coming partner (who would become a CEO of Corrs Chambers Westgarth), John Denton. Nick had worked on the other side of many litigation matters against Corrs, and was attracted to Corrs by the commercial approach they took to matters, fighting when a fight had to be had, but settling when it was in their client’s best interests to do so. After joining Corrs and working in both the Brisbane and Melbourne offices, Nick settled in the Perth office in 2000, where he developed the workplace relations team from a small subset of litigation to a standalone practice group and eventually became Partner-in-Charge of the Perth office. He acted in this role for over 10 years, focusing on the overall direction of the firm, and the Perth office in particular. In his time as Partner-in-Charge, Nick oversaw the move of the Perth office to Brookfield Place Tower 2, where the firm now works in an open-plan setting.
From UWA law student, to partner in Australia’s leading independent law firm, Corrs Chambers Westgarth (Corrs), Nick Ellery has enjoyed a diverse and interesting legal career – which has included working for a future Prime Minister and practicing internationally. In his current role at Corrs, he regularly appears as counsel in the superior courts Now focused on his day-to-day client work, and tribunals in Australia, in addition to managing Nick runs a strong workplace relations practice the day-to-day needs of his clients. and focuses extensively in industrial relations, Born and raised in Perth, Nick graduated from UWA employment, health and safety, discrimination, and in 1991 with a Bachelor of Laws, before moving to government relations. His practice specialises in the Melbourne where he joined Slater and Gordon as an strategic management of significant organisation articled clerk in 1992. There he was directly supervised change, restructures and acquisitions of businesses by Julia Gillard (Prime Minister of Australia to be) and resolution of disputes. As an active litigator in and Bernard Murphy (now a Federal Court Judge). a diverse range of industries including resources, Nick highly valued his time under Ms Gillard and construction, utilities, health, maritime, insurance Justice Murphy and remembers learning a great deal and the government sector, Nick’s days often from both. Ms Gillard had high standards, attention involve providing clients with advice on their to detail and gave strong feedback in a constructive legal rights and responsibilities under the relevant manner, and Justice Murphy had a great strategic legislation, attending client meetings and site visits, mind for the law. His time at Slater and Gordon was and appearing in courts, tribunals and mediations. spent representing unions, most prominently in a Nick is also actively involved in a number of pro number of class actions against high profile clothing bono matters. He was a member of the Board of and shoe manufacturers such as Nike and Adidas for Directors for around 10 years of the Employment Law exploiting migrant workers employed in sweatshop Centre of WA (ELCWA), a not-for-profit community type conditions in and around Melbourne. legal centre which assists vulnerable employees Nick left Slater and Gordon in the mid-90s to travel understand and enforce their rights at work through and work in London for a year as a paralegal with the legal advice, assistance, representation, education Securities and Investments Board, before returning to and law reform. He helped steer the ELCWA through Perth and working for two years as a legal officer for a merger process with two other community legal a union, now known as United Workers Union. This centres into what is now known as Circle Green, a involved a great deal of court work and advocacy in leading community legal centre in WA. industrial relations tribunals. Following his time at United Workers Union, Nick briefly returned to Slater and Gordon, before looking for a change. In 1998, Nick interviewed 198
