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HSF appoints new regulation expert
Herbert Smith Freehills has welcomed a new services regulation expert to its financial services regulatory practice in Australia.
Tony Zhang
Based in the firm’s Brisbane office, Lesley Symons joins Herbert Smith Freehills as an executive counsel, and becomes one of the leaders of the firm’s banking regulation offering.
Ms Symons also brings a background at ASIC, where she worked for more than seven years on a variety of high-profile matters, often managing teams and providing strategic, technical, and practical advice to the commission, various committees, members of the executive, and the chairman.
“Lesley is uniquely qualified for this role and we are delighted to welcome her to our team,” Mr Coburn said.
Ms Symons is a seasoned financial services lawyer with experience on both the contentious and non-contentious sides of the financial regulation spectrum, having run large-scale and complex enforcement investigations for ASIC and, more recently, acted on behalf of private clients in response to such matters.
While at ASIC, she was one of the senior managers responsible for running high-profile investigations and for launching related civil penalty proceedings.
Ms Symons’ main focus will be on financial and corporate regulation, including licence obligations, corporate and director obligations, and the regulation of financial and credit products that are the subject of ASIC supervision.
She will also advise clients on anti-money laundering, counterterrorism financing and “Know Your Customer” obligations, privacy, prudential regulation and the governance of financial organisations (including the BEAR regime), in addition to evolving areas such as payment systems.
Outside of her legal practice, Ms Symons is an acknowledged advocate for women’s equality, with an emphasis on increased access to career-enhancing opportunities for women in the law and on ensuring equal access for women to financial literacy education (as a means of achieving long-term financial stability and security).
