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This lawyer’s journey to becoming a BigLaw firm’s first female managing partner
As Carroll & O’Dea celebrates its 125th anniversary, the managing partner reflects on her thirty-year journey with the national law firm and recalls how she became its first female managing partner.
Grace Robbie
Speaking on a recent episode of The Lawyers Weekly Show, Hanaan Indari, the managing partner for national law firm Carroll & O’Dea, reflects on her remarkable 27-year-long journey with the firm where she has not only ascended through the ranks but also achieved a historic milestone as the firm’s first female managing partner. She also took the opportunity to express gratitude for the mentors who played a pivotal role in her journey and delved into the values ingrained in her that have shaped her legal career.
Indari commenced her tenure with the law firm in 1997, immediately following completing her law degree at UTS. Since then, she has spent her entire professional career at the firm, being there for a total of 27 years.
She disclosed how individuals frequently ask questions about her enduring commitment to the law firm, in which she emphasised that her dedication is attributed to her deep affection for the people she works with and the fulfilment she derives from her professional responsibilities.
“Often, people ask why I’ve stayed here and haven’t gone anywhere else, but quite simply, I’ve always loved the people I work with. The work that I’ve done has been really great work [and] very satisfying,” she said.
During her earlier years at Carroll & O’Dea, Indari underscored how she had the opportunity to collaborate closely with the firm’s partners, whose enduring mentorship and guidance significantly contributed to her professional growth.
“I had great mentors from the start, I worked very closely with partners who [are mostly] still here; one’s recently passed away. So Howard Harrison, Michael Concannon, Tony Carroll, Michael O’Dea,” she said.
“I learned very early on they’re highly ethical people, very passionate about the work they did and [how they] really wanted to serve as clients.”
Indari expressed how she resonated with the values embraced by the partners, revealing that these principles were ingrained in her from her hard-working and ethical parents.
“That aligned with my values and my upbringing. Both my parents were highly ethical and moral people. My father was a journalist and a big advocate in the Lebanese community. So I learned very early that service was very important,” she said.
Within six years of joining Carroll & O’Dea, Indari detailed how she took on the role of deputy managing partner, a newly established position at the time.
Indari has since been appointed as the managing partner, marking a significant milestone as she became the first female managing partner in the firm’s history.
“Then I’ve been managing partner for four years, and it’s a great honour to [not only hold that role], but be the first female managing partner at the firm. And to now be leading the firm in our 125th year is really extraordinary,” she said.
She attributes her success to the strong work ethic instilled in her from a young age, saying: “I worked extremely hard. I tell lawyers till now, there is no substitute for hard work. That’s how I was raised, and my parents were people that worked seven days. So I didn’t know anything different.”
Indari further said: “What I get most satisfaction from is younger people in the firm saying that they’re inspired by me and my role and they look up to me.”
