Janet Whiting

Biography

 Janet has extensive experience in competition, corporate and regulatory areas and is one of the pre-eminent commercial litigators in Australia. She has a reputation for excellence amongst clients and peers. Janet is highly regarded for providing strategic advice, detailed analysis and obtaining commercial solutions. Janet has a proven ability to work with premiers, government ministers, boards, senior bureaucrats and senior executives. From her early years, Janet developed an unusual practice combining the trusted adviser role with a number of organisations together with an extensive commercial litigation portfolio. In addition, Janet has been involved in the corporate arena as a director throughout her professional career. As a result, she has an extensive appreciation of the issues that face business leaders, not only from a legal perspective but also having regard to the commercial, political and public imperatives that need to be considered when directing organisations. Janet has extensive governance and probity experience through not only providing advice professionally but also wide spread experience in risk, finance and audit sub-committees of various organisations over 15 years. Janet is consistently recognised as a leading dispute resolution lawyer in the Australian Financial Review, Chambers Global, Chambers Asia-Pacific and Best Lawyers. Janet is the current President of the Council of Trustees of the National Gallery of Victoria, the first woman to hold the position in the Gallery’s 154 year history.  In 2015, Janet was made a Member of the Order of Australia for her significant service to the community through the arts, health and major events sectors and as a legal professional and was inducted onto the 2015 Victorian Honour Roll of Women by the Premier of Victoria. Janet was named one of Australia’s 10 Most Influential Women in the Westpac and Australian Financial Review 100 Women of Influence Awards in 2015 and won the category for Culture.  Janet was also named one of Australia’s 100 Most Influential Women in the Westpac Banking Corporation and Australian Financial Review 100 Women of Influence Awards in 2012 in the category of Boards and Management. Prior to joining Gilbert + Tobin, Janet was a partner with Corrs Chambers Westgarth for 22 years and also led their Melbourne commercial litigation division. Janet has a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Melbourne

Research Interest

 Agricultural Sciences