Te Awamutu & Otorohanga Offices
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 0872
M: 027 511 0562
Legal Executive: Kaitlyn Thompson
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6306
Legal Secretary: Paige Leenstra
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6335
Simon Brdanovic
PARTNER
Simon joined Edmonds Judd in 1995 as a graduate from Waikato University, and has been a partner since 2001. While he was initially involved in the litigation field, Simon’s primary focus now is on residential, rural and commercial conveyancing, along with trust work, while retaining an interest in both the employment and relationship property fields.
Simon is heavily involved in the local community and the profession of law.
Te Awamutu & Otorohanga Offices
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 0877
M: 021 242 1601
Legal secretaries:
Brooke Bennett
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6327
Louise Manders
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6321
Chris Grenfell
PARTNER
Chris has practiced since 2001. He was an associate at Kensington Swan in Wellington before joining the partnership at Edmonds Judd in 2010. He works in the area of civil litigation, employment and general advocacy. He has extensive court experience as well as considerable experience in various forms of alternative dispute resolution, including arbitration, mediation and assisted negotiation.
Making regular court appearances, Chris has an in-depth knowledge of civil procedure in the High and District Courts. He co-authored Brookers Civil Litigation Precedents and is also an author and tutor of Legal Professional Studies at the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6305
M: 027 493 0928
Legal Secretary: Terrene Parker
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6319
Mandy Rasmussen
PARTNER
Mandy was born in Whangarei and educated there before studying law at Auckland University. After graduating, she worked in Auckland for almost three years before leaving to travel to the United Kingdom where she worked for almost a decade.
Mandy and her husband Steve returned to New Zealand in 1992. She started working at Edmonds Judd in 1997 and has been a partner since 2017.
Mandy’s interests include her passion for Life Education Trust. She is a trustee on the Waipa King Country Trust and very involved with helping to promote the programme that the Trust provides to schools in the area. She also enjoys gardening, reading and travel (whenever that is possible)”.
Mandy’s specialisations are Property Law including Residential and Commercial Conveyancing, Business, Trusts and Estates.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 0876
M: 021 308 447
Legal Secretary: Linda Olausen
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6318
Rachael Beattie
PARTNER
Rachael was born in the Waikato, and completed her secondary schooling at Te Awamutu College before undertaking her law degree at Waikato University. Rachael joined the firm in 2001 and progressed within the firm from a Legal Secretary to Solicitor.
Rachael’s primary focus in on property law and private client matters, including residential and commercial property transactions, along with Trusts and asset planning. Rachael also has a particular interest in Retirement Villages and Unit Title transactions.
Outside of the office Rachael and her husband Sam are kept busy with their young son.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6307
M: 027 463 9362
Legal Executive: Kate Russell
DDI: 07 872 6311
E: [email protected]
Legal secretary: Karen Gibson
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6314
Lucy Sim
PARTNER
Lucy completed her Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology and History) at the University of Waikato and joined Edmonds Judd in December 2013, after making the move to Te Awamutu from Thames. Lucy works in general practice specialising in Commercial property, Trusts and Private client matters.
Outside of the office, Lucy enjoys spending time with family and friends and sailing around the Coromandel.
Te Awamutu Office
Legal secretaries:
Brooke Bennett
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6327
Louise Manders
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6321
Nicolette Brodnax
Special Counsel
Nicolette graduated from the University of Auckland in 1990 with degrees in Arts and Law and moved to the Waikato with her husband shortly after. She has accumulated nearly twenty years of legal experience in the litigation field particularly in civil disputes, debt recovery and employment law and has most recently practiced on her own account as a Criminal Barrister with a particular interest in Appeals work. She returned to University, earning a Masters degree with first class honours in litigation and arbitration in 2015.
Nicolette is also a nationally exhibited potter who has had a number of committee positions on local arts charities and is an active volunteer with Conservation organisations, with a special interest in kiwi recovery. In her spare time she is happiest tramping or mountain-biking with her husband and teenage son.
Te Awamutu Office
Legal secretaries:
Legal secretaries:
Brooke Bennett
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6327
Louise Manders
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6321
Joanne Dickson
Special Counsel
I am an experienced commercial and civil litigator specialising in the resolution of commercial and civil disputes, particularly those involving intellectual property and media issues and commercial contracts. I regularly appear before New Zealand courts.
I have acted on matters involving, among other things, copyright, trademarks, patents, and confidential information, defamation, privacy, the Fair Trading Act, trusts, insurance, and shareholder and contractual disputes.
Otorohanga Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6320
M: 027 233 6412
Michelle Anselmi
SENIOR SOLICITOR
Michelle is a dual qualified Scottish and New Zealand Lawyer and has been with Edmonds Judd since October 2016.
Michelle trained in Scotland as a lawyer and then practiced in two of Scotland’s largest firms for five years as a commercial lawyer, specializing in Intellectual Property, IT and Biotechnology.
After marrying a farmer from Piopio, she relocated to New Zealand in 2009 and has been living in Otorohanga for the last 8 years. Michelle primarily focuses on property, estates and trusts and is based full time in Edmonds Judd’s Otorohanga Office.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6313
Legal secretary: Karen Gibson
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6314
Fiona Jack
SOLICITOR
Fiona Jack joined the EJ team in October 2019. Fiona returns to law after taking time out to home school her children and working on their dairy farm. She previously worked for Brent Kelly Law Office and Harkness Henry, Hamilton. Fiona has a primarily property and personal legal services focus to her practice and is currently working alongside EJ’s newest partner, Lucy Sim
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6324
Legal secretaries:
Brooke Bennett
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6327
Louise Manders
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6321
Ronja Holz
SOLICITOR
Ronja sudied at the University of Waikato and worked with a Hamilton law firm specialising in Family Law before joining Edmonds Judd in June 2019. Ronja is a solicitor working in the Litigation team focusing on Relationship Property and Employment matters.
Ronja was born in Germany and moved to Te Awamutu with her family in 2003. Outside of the office, Ronja is kept busy with her two young children and enjoys exploring New Zealand.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6323
Legal Secretary: Terrene Parker
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6319
Bailey Robertson
SOLICITOR
Bailey joined Edmonds Judd in June 2019 after completing his Bachelor of Laws with Honours degree at the University of Waikato in December 2018. He was admitted as a Solicitor in July 2019. He brings a wealth of knowledge from the property sector, as he worked as a Property Manager and Legal Adviser within the Property Management industry for 6 years, while studying for his law degree. Bailey works on the Property and Commercial team under the direction of Mandy Rasmussen.
Bailey grew up in Hamilton but has family connections throughout the wider Waikato region. In Bailey’s spare time he enjoys going to the gym, socialising with his family, and taking weekend road trips around the country.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6331
Legal secretaries:
Brooke Bennett
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6327
Louise Manders
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6321
Dayna Dustan
SOLICITOR
Dayna joined Edmonds Judd in November 2020 as part of the Litigation team under Chris Grenfell, after working at a legal charity organisation as an administrator. She gained her Bachelor of Laws in 2018 from the University of Waikato and was admitted as a solicitor in October 2019.
Dayna moved to the Waikato from South Africa in 2016. She enjoys exploring all parts of New Zealand while keeping busy with outdoor activities.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6332
Legal secretaries:
Brooke Bennett
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6327
Louise Manders
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6321
Anastasia Cox
SOLICITOR
Anastasia studied at the University of Waikato, gaining her Bachelor of Laws in 2019 and her Master of Laws with First Class Honours in 2020, In November 2020 she was admitted as a solicitor and began working at Edmonds Judd in the Litigation team under Chris Grenfell.
Having moved from Hawkes Bay, Anastasia enjoys exploring the Waikato and upper North Island when she isn’t busy with friends and family.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6315
Megan Hunt
SOLICITOR
Megan joined Edmonds Judd in January 2021 and is another University of Waikato Graduate. She qualified with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in English and Anthropology, alongside her Bachelor of Laws before heading to Wellington to work as an in-house Solicitor at the Real Estate Agents Authority in 2011. Megan then spent five years based in the UK where, among her travels, she specialised in Data Protection and Information Governance with the General Dental Council.
Megan moved to Te Kuiti in 2020 and will primarily be based at our Otorohanga office, after learning the ropes in Te Awamutu.
Outside of the office Megan is passionate about conservation, enjoys horse riding, hunting and getting into the garden.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6333
Legal Secretary: Paige Leenstra
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6335
Angela Pope
SOLICITOR
Angela joined EJ in January, 2021 and works in Simon Brdanovic’s team.
Angela recently returned to New Zealand after having spent 10 years in the Cook Islands working for an international trustee company which specialises in financial and corporate services. Prior to that she worked for Inder Lynch Lawyers based in Counties-Manukau.
In her spare time Angela keeps busy with various commercial and governance roles involving land and business interests in tourism, farming and forestry in the wider Waikato-King Country region.
Otorohanga Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 873 7178
John Millar
CONSULTANT
John joined the Edmonds Judd family following the acquisition of his long-standing practice in Otorohanga.
John has a wealth of experience in a wide variety of areas of law, from property, litigation and everything else in between.
John is well known in the Otorohanga area and has dedicated many hours to community groups.
Te Awamutu Office
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6316
Legal Secretary: Karen Baker
E: [email protected]
DDI: 07 872 6301
Keith Hetherington
CONSULTANT
Keith, and his partner Jane, moved to Te Awamutu from Auckland for a planned lifestyle change. In Auckland Keith was in practice, initially with Wynyard Wood for 25 years and as a partner for 22 years and then as a consultant with other firms. Keith brings with him a wide range of legal experience in the areas of property, contracts, company, commercial law and trusts.
Until recently Keith was a Trustee for fifteen years of three sub trusts under the charitable trust Project K (now known as Future Youth Development Trust). A trust that was originally established by Graeme Dingle to assist in youth development throughout New Zealand
In his spare time Keith loves to fish, both in our oceans and back country rivers. He is also a keen gardener and loves entertaining family and friends and preparing delicious meals using fresh produce from his garden and food gathered in the wild.
MEET THE TEAM
