James Werner

James is a solicitor at Thrive Workplace Consulting & Legal and has worked with Amanda Harvey since 2021. James has recently been recognised by the Law Society of NSW as a finalist for the award of Early Career Lawyer of the Year and by LawyersWeekly as a finalist for the award of 30 Under 30 in the category of employment and workplace relations, health and safety.

James can assist with a broad range of employment and industrial related matters, including preparing advice through to assistance with litigation of matters if necessary. He has experience servicing both employers and employees and is highly regarded for his sensible and pragmatic approach to matters, balancing his clients’ interests to deliver strong outcomes in an effective and cost-efficient manner. James is trusted to provide advice to large corporate/commercial clients and senior employees, including directors and chief-executives.

James regularly instructs counsel (barristers) in a range of courts and tribunals and also appears for clients when required. James’ primary litigation experience is in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, employment divisions of federal courts, the NSW Industrial Relations Commission and the Fair Work Commission.

James has a penchant for holding the public service and regulators accountable for statutory decision making, seeking justice for aggrieved members of the public. His work has significantly contributed to public sector accountability and the community. His ability to calmly and swiftly navigate the substantive law and practice in a variety of courts and tribunals is impressive.

You can find some examples of decisions that James has made substantive contributions to linked here:

• Employment Termination Dispute: Wood v Secretary of the Department of Transport on behalf of the Government of New South Wales [2021] NSWSC
• Employment Termination Dispute: X v Secretary, Department of Education [2022] NSWIRComm 1070 and X v Secretary, Department of Education (No 2) [2022] NSWIRComm 1092
• Government Administrative Decision Making Dispute: Re Paul [2023] NSWSC 1635 and Re Paul (No 2) [2024] NSWSC 106