Sarah Walters
Special Counsel, Brisbane
I am an employment, industrial relations and safety law specialist who assists clients in proactively managing legal risks arising in the workplace. I also support clients with litigious matters under Federal and State legislative schemes.

I enjoy working with clients to gain a thorough understanding of their business and goals.

I assist across all work related areas, from proactive management of issues and assessment of risk, setting industrial and safety strategy and answering day to day queries, through to managing day to day workplace behaviours, emergent safety and industrial incidents, employment litigation and disputes.

I advise clients in relation to all employment related matters including workplace disputes, retention of employees, employee terminations (including allegations of unfair dismissal), employee misconduct matters, enterprise bargaining, industrial disputes, performance management, discrimination, health and safety and the effect of legislation and industrial instruments.

I have a particular focus on safety, industrial strategy and workplace litigation (across all Commissions and Courts).

I work with clients from a number of industries, particularly mining, property and construction, manufacturing, aged care and health.

Outside of my workplace practice, I'm also actively involved in MinterEllison's Community Investment Program.

Career highlights

  • Assisting clients in both initiating and defending contested employment matters in the Federal and State Courts, Tribunals and Commissions.
  • Assisting with alternative dispute resolution options including resolving matters through conciliations and mediations.
  • Advising clients across multiple sectors in relation to proactively managing safety by building, monitoring and maintaining robust safety management systems including executive and board reporting.
  • Assisted several clients across multiple industries with on the ground support in the immediate aftermath of serious safety incidents including fatalities, as well as supported ongoing engagement with regulators and other stakeholders including families, workers, contractors and media.
  • Advising private and public sector clients in relation to all industrial issues including strategic advice, urgent applications, disputes arising under enterprise agreements, industrial action, challenges to the classification of employees and approvals of enterprise agreements.
  • Assisting with the management of protected and unprotected industrial action across industries including education, health, mining, manufacturing, aged care and construction industries.
  • Advising schools, construction clients, government owned corporations, health and aged care clients in relation to general employment matters, including under applicable enterprise agreements, employee termination issues and general protections matters, discrimination matters, and bargaining process and approval of enterprise agreements.
  • Advising and representing private clients and regulators in relation to enforcement proceedings.
  • I have completed secondments, as Principal Legal Counsel at BHP and Legal Counsel, to Ergon Energy and Energex.