The Asian Australian Lawyers Assocation, NSW Branch and Frederick Jordan Chambers bring to you the 2025 March Madness Series.
Event Details
Time and Date: Commencement is according to schedule above, registration is 10 mins before commencement time
Format: All CPDs are hosted at Frederick Jordan Chambers except for noted online sessions in which case the Zoom login details will be emailed to registrants 3 days before the CPD session
Price: Free
CPD: 1 point in for each session (being 9 points in total), self-allocated
How to register: If you would like to register, you will need to register for each specific session you would like to attend. After completing your first registration, you can return back to the event screen to register for another session using the relevant CPD session ticket.
About the presenters
CPD 1: Vendor's liability in respect of defects in quality under the tort of deceit (6 March, 5pm)
Tony Di Francesco practiced as a solicitor at Home Wilkinson Lowry (now HWL Ebsworth) from June 2005 – June 2007, and previously at Michell Sillar Attoneys from 2000-2005. From 1999 until early 2000, Tony was Tipstaff to The Honourable Mr Justice R. L. Hunter, (Supreme Court of NSW) and previously worked as an Equal Employment Oppourtunity Officer at NSW TAB/TAB Ltd in 1998.
Tony holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) and an LLB from the University of New South Wales.
CPD 2: Parental Alienation: What is it? Does it represent an unacceptable risk? (12 March, 5pm)
As a family law specialist, Neil Jackson has particular expertise in property and child-related disputes. The depth of his practice also extends to expert knowledge in the law relating to de facto relationships.
Neil maintains a strong advisory practice and regularly appears in the Family Court of Australia, Family Circuit Court and in appellate courts for a broad range of clients, including the Independent Children’s Lawyer. The breadth of his practice has also seen him appear in Family Law Court Registries outside Sydney, including Townsville, Brisbane, Parramatta, Newcastle, Canberra and interstate, such as Melbourne and Perth. He has been appointed Mediator of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and has participated in hundreds of mediations and conciliation conferences throughout his legal career.
Prior to being called to the Bar, Neil acquired significant private practice experience, including as Associate Partner at Turner Freeman, where he ran the firm’s extensive family law practice. Neil holds a Master of Laws from the University of New South Wales and a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Economics from the University of Sydney.
CPD 3: ALRC Native Titles Future Acts Review (13 March, 5pm)
Appointed Senior Counsel in 2015, Tony McAvoy SC has developed a strong native title practice and has successfully appeared for claimants in several land claims. He has also acquired significant experience in the areas of environmental law, administrative law, human rights and discrimination law, coronial inquests and criminal law.
Notably, between 2011 and 2013, Tony was an Acting Part-Time Commissioner of the NSW Land and Environment Court.
Tony is also the Acting Northern Territory Treaty Commissioner from the period of 8 December 2021 to 30 June 2022.
CPD 4: International Arbitration Review (17 March, 5:30pm)
Ronny Chen was called to the Bar in 2018, after being admitted as a solicitor in 2015. Ronny has practised as a commercial litigator. He is experienced with matters in the Supreme Court and the Federal Court. Ronny’s practice focuses on contract disputes, commercial disputes, corporations law, insolvency matters, and international arbitration.
Ronny Chen accepts briefs to act as counsel in domestic and international commercial arbitrations. Ronny is also able to accept appointments as an Arbitrator, Mediator, and arbitral Tribunal Secretary. Ronny is a Fellow of Charted Institute of Arbitrators (CIarb) and holds a Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration from the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK).
In addition to English, Ronny Chen speaks, reads, and writes a variety of Chinese languages including Mandarin, Cantonese, Chiu-Chow. Ronny has a particular interest in matters involving cross-border elements, contracts written or concluded in the Chinese language, or Chinese laws.
Ronny has been recognised as a Rising Star by the Legal500 Asia-Pacific Edition 2025 rankings for commercial disputes at the Australian Bar. A Rising Star is classified as a barrister between four- and eight-years’ call who are seen as up-and-coming members of the Bar.
CPD 5: Ethics (20 March, 5pm)
David Ash maintains a broad civil practice spanning administrative law, corporations law, trade practices, insolvency and bankruptcy, equity, real property, trusts, succession and family provision.
He regularly advises and appears for executors, beneficiaries and trustees in State and Federal Courts and statutory tribunals, as well as appellate courts, and has appeared in constitutional matters before the Supreme Court of New South Wales, Court of Appeal and High Court of Australia. David is accredited as a mediator and as an arbitrator by the NSW Bar Association and is regularly retained to facilitate dispute resolutions. He gives addresses on dispute resolution in Australia and overseas.
Prior to being called to the Bar, David practised as a solicitor at a well-established law firm, now HWL Ebsworth, where he practised in commercial litigation and insolvency litigation. While in private practice, David conducted complex litigation on behalf of blue-chip clients, which included some of Australia’s largest financial institutions. He has also worked as a research officer at the Judicial Commission of New South Wales.
CPD 6: Privacy/Cyber Cases (24 March, 5:30pm)
Linda Zeng is a highly skilled cyber and technology lawyer who has been nominated for the Cyber 30 Under 30 and Women in Law – Rising Star awards. She has extensive experience in both contentious and non-contentious cyber, technology, privacy, and data security matters.
With a strong foundation in STEM and having studied Harvard's Introduction to Computer Science for Lawyers course, Linda possesses a deep understanding of the intersection between technology and the law. Her hands-on experience with coding languages such as SQL, Python, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript enables her to bridge the gap between legal complexities and technological intricacies, offering innovative and effective solutions to her clients in simple terms.
Linda's unique blend of legal acumen and technical expertise makes her a trusted advisor in the ever-changing cyber and technology landscape.
CPD 7: How to handle difficult conversations (25 March, 12:30pm) (online)
Christopher Kong is the founder of Crouching Tiger Network (CTN). He runs role-play simulation bootcamps to empower technical experts, introverts & culturally diverse professionals to master challenging workplace situations.
With two decades of experience, Christopher has held leadership roles in data-driven digital transformation at Cadbury/Kraft, Nielsen and Danone. Having spent 17 years based in Asia (China, Singapore) after growing up in Australia, he possesses a nuanced understanding of diverse cultural dynamics. Holding a BCom/LLB (Hons) from the University of Melbourne and as a Chartered Financial Analyst, he understands the challenges that technical professionals face to establish leadership presence.
In 2020, Christopher was recognised as one of the 40 under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australians. He was also presented with the Australia China Alumni Award for Corporate Achievement. He now serves as a Board Member of Enactus Australia, a Committee Member at the Asian-Australian Foundation and an Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne.
Attendees can expect to gain key insights from Christopher on how to navigate difficult conversations with colleagues and clients.
CPD 8: Masters v Cameron (26 March, 5pm)
Beth Oliak maintains a general commercial practice, and has particular expertise in intellectual property, unfair trade practices, real property, corporations law and equity. Her practice also extends to family provisions, wills and estates, building and construction and family law.
Admitted to the Bars of New South Wales, New York and California, Beth has acquired significant international experience. Throughout her legal career, her global reach has seen her act for blue-chip clients including Google, Sanofi-Aventis, Fujitsu and Disney. Beth regularly appears unled in the Federal Court of Australia, Equity Division of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and the District Court of New South Wales. Notably, she has appeared unled in a number of different courts of appeal, including the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of NSW, the Full Federal Court of Australia, the Full Family Court of Australia and the US Court of Appeal for the Fourth Circuit. Beth also continues to receive briefs concerning patent disputes from the United States, where she is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (Reg No 41,229).
Prior to relocating to Australia, Beth practised primarily in intellectual property litigation in major New York law firms. She gained considerable advocacy experience in the United States, which has a fused legal profession, from which she has leveraged to create a solid advocacy practice at the New South Wales Bar. Previous experience also includes practising as a Senior Lawyer at Gilbert + Tobin in Sydney.
Beth lectures in Intellectual Property for the LEC Course at the University of Sydney and regularly delivers presentations on legal developments in her practice areas. She has also been a contributing author to significant law journals. Beth holds a Juris Doctorate from Washington University in St Louis School of Law and a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering from Northwestern University.
CPD 9: Time bars in civil actions; interesting and/or practical issues (27 March, 5pm)
Hamilton Zhao practised as a litigation solicitor for 5 years before coming to the Bar in May 2020. During his time as a solicitor, he worked on contractual and real property disputes, trust claims, personal and corporate insolvency cases (including bankruptcy applications, winding up applications and voidable transactions), partnership and corporations disputes, debt recovery, intellectual property and building and construction matters. He practises and accepts briefs in those areas.
Hamilton is fluent in Mandarin. Hamilton has been recognised as a leading junior by the Legal500 Asia-Pacific Edition 2025 rankings for commercial disputes at the Australian Bar. Leading juniors are defined by Legal500 as those with significant experience of key cases, strong peer and client recognition, and are seen as future candidates for silk.
