MinterEllisonRuddWatts

Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Partner and Head of Restructuring and Insolvency

Sean is an experienced commercial litigation lawyer whose expertise spans a broad range of commercial and contract disputes. He has a leading reputation for both his litigation and general advisory practice relating to receivership and insolvency law, security enforcement, restructuring and corporate recovery.

As a leading insolvency and restructuring lawyer, Sean advises secured and unsecured creditors, lending syndicates, insolvency practitioners, corporates, boards, and other stakeholders, and regularly acts for banks and all major insolvency advisory firms. He is often called upon to advise on directors’ duties, provide front end structuring and insolvency advice, security reviews and general commercial advice.

Sean’s general commercial litigation practice spans property, shareholder, contracts, cross-border, trusts and product liability disputes as well as security enforcement, banking litigation, creditors remedies, freezing orders, and other emergency relief.

A highly regarded advocate, Sean has appeared as counsel at all levels of the court system and before various arbitral and other tribunals. He has completed the Oxford Programme of Negotiation and regularly engages in mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution.

He has acted on many significant restructuring and insolvency transactions, including Central North Island Forest Partnership, Crafar Farms, Kawarau Falls, Reef Shipping, Solid Energy, Yarrows Bakers, Torchlight LP, Wynyard Group, Dick Smith, CBL Insurance, and Sacred Hill Vineyards. He was sought after to advise on New Zealand’s COVID-19 relief package for directors and businesses facing potential insolvency due to the global pandemic.

Sean presents widely on insolvency related topics. He also authors the New Zealand chapter on cross-border insolvency and the UNCITRAL Model Law in Cross-Border Insolvency, a text by Globe Law & Business comparing the application of the Model Law in various jurisdictions.

English

Member, Restructuring Insolvency & Turnaround Association of New Zealand (RITANZ)

Member, Banking and Financial Services Law Association

Member, IBA

Oxford Programme on Negotiation, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

MComLaw (Hons), University of Auckland (1998)

LLB (Hons), BA, University of Auckland (1992)