Yvonne Lam

_{Yvonne Lam is a partner at Gilchrist Connell, specialising in advising on corporate and regulatory matters for the insurance industry, and has recently stepped into a new role as NSW Branch President with Asian Australian Lawyers Association (AALA).}

On finding your place in the law

What inspired you to pursue a career in law, and how did you find your niche within the field?

Following my graduation from UNSW, I started in a graduate program at AMP in their financial services division as I hold a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance) as well as my law degree. At that time, I was initially more drawn to a career in business rather than in law but later realised that I actually wanted to pursue a career that allowed me to combine my finance background with legal expertise.

Fortunately, around the time that I came to that realisation, a role opened up for a graduate lawyer opportunity in an international insurance law firm which was launching in Australia. After following that path for over a decade, I am currently a partner in Australian insurance law firm Gilchrist Connell, specialising in advising on corporate and regulatory matters for the insurance industry. In this career, I have been able to draw upon both my legal and financial skillsets and it has allowed me to carve out a niche in this space due to my commercial approach to advising clients on complex legal matters relating to mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, compliance and regulatory investigations such as those related to the landmark Financial Services Royal Commission.

How important do you think it is for young lawyers to find a specific area of law they are passionate about?

It is rare as a young lawyer that you find the specific area of law that is your passion. It may take some trial and error (like in my case) before you find your ideal space in the industry based on your strengths and interests. My advice to young lawyers would be to keep an open mind, try a few different areas of law first (such as through graduate program rotations) before you make an informed decision on where you would like to specialise in your career in the law.

On mentorship

Can you share an experience where a mentor significantly impacted your professional journey?

Through the Asian Australian Lawyers Association’s National Mentoring Program, I was matched with a senior lawyer (also of an Asian Australian background) in a similar area of practice as mine at a time when I had just been promoted into a senior lawyer role myself. There were many parallels in our career trajectories, and she shared a number of pearls of wisdom with me which really resonated and shaped my way forward in the industry. A few years later, I was pleased to see that she had been promoted to partner at another law firm, and she inspired me to pursue a similar promotion when the opportunity came up for me to lead and build a new practice in a different firm as a partner.

What advice would you give to current students about seeking and maintaining mentor relationships?

As a mentee who benefited from a mentor’s timely guidance in my own career (both through AALA and other mentoring arrangements), my advice to current students is to be brave enough to reach out to role models to seek these mentors and to proactively drive the mentoring relationship – come ready with questions for your mentor and you may be pleasantly surprised by the willingness of more senior members of the industry to share their guidance with you.

On their time at UNSW

How did your education at UNSW prepare you for your career in law?

My time at UNSW allowed me to develop logical reasoning skills in both my law and commerce degrees, which are critical to the role that I have chosen to pursue as a corporate insurance and regulatory lawyer, where I am often advising on factually and legally complex matters for a variety of clients.

UNSW also had excellent student societies which I was involved with, including both the Law Society where I was the Negotiations Competition Coordinator and the Business Society where I was the Vice President (External Operations) with oversight of the Careers, Sponsorship and Education portfolios. My extracurricular involvement with both of these student societies enabled me to build strong time management skills and gave me the opportunity to lead a team from early on, which has been a foundational skillset for me as I have moved into various leadership roles throughout in my career in law.

Were there any particular courses or teachers at UNSW that had a lasting impact on you?

Reflecting on the calibre of teachers at UNSW who were all passionate about their chosen areas of the law, the standout for me was The Hon. Keith Mason AC QC (former President of the Court of Appeal of NSW) who taught an equity and conceptual framework of the common law course. Having such a distinguished authority on this area of the law teaching the course left a lasting impression on me, as I enjoyed the subject more than I had expected and it ended up being one of my better subjects in my law degree.

Professor Michael Legg was also a memorable lecturer in the core civil litigation courses. While I chose not to pursue a litigation path in my legal career, I have often come across his academic papers on corporate misconduct, securities class actions and regulatory litigation in my area of legal practice which intersects with these topics and it brings back fond memories of his teachings at UNSW.

On being part of the Asian Australian Lawyers Association

What motivated you to join the Asian Australian Lawyers Association, and what benefits have you gained from being a member?

Initially, I joined AALA as a member to participate as a mentee in the National Mentoring Program as I was seeking guidance from a more senior lawyer who had been in my shoes from a cultural background perspective. I gained these insights and more, finding a community of likeminded individuals who are also navigating their pathways through the legal industry.

I continued my involvement with AALA afterwards as a mentor in following years and enjoyed connecting with the next generation of lawyers coming through the industry. In 2024, after being awarded the Susan Gin Scholarship for the William Ah Ket Leadership Program at the ANU’s Centre for Asian-Australian Leadership, I decided it was the right time in my career to take on a leadership role within AALA’s executive team and was appointed as NSW Branch Vice-President. I have stepped into the NSW Branch President role in 2025 and am enjoying the opportunity to lead a fantastic team of volunteers who are dedicated to running initiatives tailored for our AALA members.

How do you think the association supports Asian Australian lawyers in navigating their careers and what initiatives or programs from the association have you found most valuable?

As the national peak body representing Asian Australian lawyers and lawyers with an interest in Asia, AALA has had a track record of over 10 years of supporting AALA members with navigating their careers through a mix of professional development programs such as CPD/soft skills programs designed for our members, showcasing inspiring Asian Australian leaders in the legal industry through panel discussions and networking events at a local branch level to build community connections.

At a personal level, the National Mentoring Program which is run every year by AALA has been the most rewarding AALA initiative for my career (both as a mentee and mentor). More recently, I have found the National Cultural Diversity Summit that AALA has run in a virtual and hybrid format following the pandemic to be thought-provoking and insightful, featuring an impressive line up of prominent leaders from the Asian Australian legal community from across all Australian states and territories, as well as the opportunity to network with these leaders at the in-person events.