Our Team

Grant is the Principal of Garden & Montgomerie and a highly experienced solicitor who has practiced law since 1994. He joined G&M in 2004 – the same year he immigrated to Australia from Durban, South Africa with his wife and two young daughters – and has been a partner since 2006 and the sole principal since 2018.

Grant’s main areas of expertise include agribusiness, commercial and business structuring and transactions, rural conveyancing, succession planning (personal, rural and business), Wills and probates, and estate administration including contested estates. Small wonder then that Grant’s typical work day simply “starts early and ends late”.

Experience, expertise and a single-minded focus are the best skills Grant brings to his job, ensuring each of his clients get the best outcome possible. The relationships Grant forms with these clients are his favourite aspect of working at G&M. “We have a number of families who have been clients of the firm for generations. I love that sense of continuity and enjoy seeing the next generation coming through.”

Having limited time away from the office to pursue his sporting passions, Grant has participated in a number of different sports with a conspicuous lack of success, illustrated by his first canoe race which he started with his canoe facing the wrong way (upriver), capsized three times (once at every rapid) and finally abandoned completely at the 10km mark when he sunk his canoe. A client meeting on the golf course with Grant is not recommended either!

Aside from his dubious sporting career, Grant tends to prefer spending his downtime at home with his family: wife, Genevieve, daughters Hannah and Rachael and Australian-born son, Jack.

Born and raised in Cowra, June is G&M’s longest-serving staff member having joined the firm in 1998 as the Office Junior. She served as an indispensable paralegal to her eventual predecessor and mentor, Geoff Casey, for many years before completing a Bachelor of Laws from the University of New England (2014) and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice (Distinction) from the Australian National University (2014).

June was admitted as a Lawyer in the Supreme Court of New South Wales in early 2015 and included in the High Court of Australia’s Register of Practitioners that same year.

June’s main area of practice is Family Law and she also has broad experience in Criminal Law and Civil Litigation. Her typical day at G&M involves liaising with clients and other legal professionals and appearing in various regional courts as required. June’s attention to detail, hardworking ethos and passion for obtaining the best outcome for all of her clients makes her a highly valued member of G&M and a highly sought-after regional solicitor. Despite her frustration with the delays in the family law system bringing matters to finality, June is committed to offering professional, supportive and timely services to her clients.

Although June spends the majority of her waking hours at G&M, she enjoys a range of extra-curricular hobbies including photography (award-winning), playing tennis (A-Grade player), helping out of the family farm (fourth-generation farming family), reading and handicrafts such as cross-stitch and diamond-painting.

Lachlan joined Garden & Montgomerie as an extremely capable lawyer in 2016, following time spent at a business law firm in Sydney with monthly rotations to Cootamundra and Gundagai. Prior to this, Lachlan completed a double degree in Economics and Law at the University of New England and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Australian National University. His main areas of practice at G&M are in Property, Leasing, Water, Superannuation, Wills and Estates.

Lachlan and Grant Chamberlain both practice from G&M’s Canowindra office on a regular basis.

Growing up in Gooloogong on the Lachlan River and being schooled in the region, Lachlan has a strong background knowledge of local people and places, which is invaluable in his role and aligns with his passion for agriculture. Lachlan is also a weekend farmer, a member of NSW Farmers and serves the Cowra Show Society Executive Committee and NSW Lamb Show as Chief Steward.

Practising at G&M provides Lachlan with the opportunity to provide legal services to the community he grew up in and he is driven to achieve successful results and outcomes for his clients. He also works to continually ensure that, using technology, all G&M clients receive the same level of access to legal services, regardless of their locality – an aim that befits Lachlan’s characteristics as a determined, passionate and caring solicitor.

Rosa has been with Garden & Montgomerie for 20 years, and has more than 30 years’ experience within the legal industry. As Grant Chamberlain’s Assistant, Rosa applies her key attributes of organisation, strong work ethic and attention to detail on a constant basis and is generally one of the first to arrive and last to leave each day. Her typical day includes a range of tasks including administration, conveyancing, Wills, company establishment and estates.

Rosa thrives on her expansive role as well as on the challenges it offers her and enjoys the friendly atmosphere of G&M. She is an energetic, reliable and knowledgeable colleague who is committed to providing excellent customer service and assisting anyone who asks for a helping hand. Rosa’s mantra in both her work-life and home-life is to always look for the positives in any situation, a legacy from her Dad who also thought positively.

In her rare time away from G&M, Rosa is an excellent cook and baker (to which her colleagues can attest) and she enjoys spending quality time with her family and socialising with friends.

Having left Sydney more than 40 years ago in search of a quiet tree-change in Cowra, Sharyn still questions how she ended up eventually working at G&M in Bookkeeping – the antithesis of a quiet work day! However, despite her own fast-paced and hectic work days, Sharyn somehow manages to be the cool and calm head who steadies the ship here at G&M.

Her job description covers finances, bookkeeping and “anything else she’s told to do!” so Sharyn’s abilities to adapt to constantly-changing situations and keep her head on a swivel as well as a passion for being pedantic means she is terrific at her role.

Sharyn’s favourite aspects of her job are its varied nature and the people she works with. She takes great pride in the practice itself and is determined each day to do the job well and always get it right.

When she can manage time away from the office, Sharyn enjoys social tennis at the local club and reading. She also devotes a small amount of time to contemplating her overwhelming pile of craft to-do projects!

Cynthia works in administration on a full-time basis at Garden & Montgomerie, having joined the team in early 2021. A typical day in the office for Cynthia might include invoicing, creation of client files, preparing contracts, client liaison and data entry as well as manning the G&M Reception desk as the ‘Back-up Switch Chick’ when required. Small wonder that one of Cynthia’s values is helping others!

An honest, reliable and dedicated worker, Cynthia enjoys the challenge of learning new skills at G&M and appreciates the friendly and helpful staff. Her past experience and skills have quickly made her a valued and welcome member of the crew.

Cynthia is an avid reader outside of the office and is passionate about supporting ADRA (Adventist Development and Relief Agency) and Guide Dogs Australia. She also devoted time on her weekends to a children’s church program as a teacher when she lived in Sydney.

Elyse Sutherland brings a reliable, helpful and happy persona to G&M, where she has worked for over a decade, most recently as Personal Assistant to June Langfield. During this time, Elyse has completed a Traineeship and a Certificate IV in Business Administration (2010).

Elyse’s day-to-day involves liaising with clients and clerical and administrative duties across the Family Law and Criminal and Civil Litigation services. She enjoys a friendly and effective working relationship with June and thrives on the variety of cases she is involved with, knowing that no two are the same.

Elyse currently works part-time and is in the G&M Cowra office on Wednesdays and Thursdays. When she is not working, Elyse enjoys spending time with her husband and three daughters (including twins)!

Annabel is one of the newest kids on the G&M block, working in the office on Mondays and Thursdays since mid-2021 in a marketing and digital media capacity. Her role includes managing the firm’s social media (follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn today!), business promotion and growth, website management, advertising and content creation.

A degree in communications, experience in event management, promotions, social media campaigns, team building, executive-level support, administration and a diverse corporate background (and many indoor plants) are useful skills and credentials Annabel brings to her position. She has a strong interest in learning new things, is quick to learn these new things and is a friendly, outgoing team member.

Annabel loves the challenges, opportunities and autonomy of her role at G&M plus the great people, variation of tasks and the social morning and afternoon teas – cornerstones of the Garden & Montgomerie work day.

Having spent several years living overseas and interstate, Annabel is proud to once again call Cowra home and recognises the “centre of world friendship” as a great place to raise a family. She spends her downtime with her three young sons and patient husband and also enjoys catching up with friends and trying to understand and control her large, ‘sometimes-thriving / sometimes-dying’ garden.

Maryanne is G&M’s newest recruit and is busy learning the ropes around the firm. Her role is in administrative and clerical support, assisting Grant’s PA, Rosa with her workload and helping other staff as required. Maryanne is also the self-appointed ‘Weeder of the Garden’ at G&M whenever time allows.

A born and bred Cowra girl, Maryanne left town for the bright lights of Sydney and has spend the last 20+ years as a legal secretary in a leading law firm. She brings a wealth of legal experience to her position at G&M and is already well-regarded as an open, easy-going and hard-working member of the team. Among others, Maryanne’s key skills are her strong attention to detail, organisational and time-management capabilities and her social nature. She’s pretty handy at fly-spraying and insect control too!

Maryanne’s socialising extends outside the office as well – when she’s not working, she likes spending time with friends and is partial to a good cheese platter. She enjoys spending her downtime in the garden and is passionate about the Return-And-Earn Recycling Program: “the great circle of life”.

Maryanne currently works in the office on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Kaitlyn wears two large hats at G&M, which means that her days are never dull, generally chaotic, and no one is ever the same as any other – exactly how she likes her work days! Drawing on her extensive business administration and customer service training, Kaitlyn more than meets the challenges of her role and thrives on constantly learning something new and building her knowledge base.

Hard-working, kind and loyal, Kaitlyn’s days involve preparing contracts, exchanging documents, arranging settlements, assisting with Wills and Powers of Attorney, client service and invoicing. She is even a Barista – a qualification highly valued by her fellow G&M staff!

Kaitlyn is driven by the values of hard work and loyalty and she cares deeply about gender equality and providing help for those in domestic violence situations.

As Mum to gorgeous Liam, Kaitlyn loves spending time with her son outside of the office – and sometimes even in the office when we can persuade them to visit – and catching up with her friends whenever possible

Hannah’s role as Junior Assistant at G&M means that no two days are the same. Her job can include file management and preservation, ad hoc administrative duties, restocking office supplies and generally ensuring the wellbeing and upkeep of all staff members. Luckily, Hannah’s adaptable, passionate and high-spirited nature perfectly suits the variability of her role and she prides herself on consistently doing “whatever needs to be done” to keep the office running smoothly.

Hannah values the kind and friendly nature of the other staff at G&M who, in turn, appreciate her happy personality and tuneful humming which keeps everyone upbeat!

Completing her high school education in 2016, Hannah spent time travelling in the UK and South Africa the following year. During this time she visited family, gained valuable work experience and also volunteered for causes important to her.

Away from the office, Hannah pursues her artistic interests which include charcoal drawing and an amateur foray into mosaics. She is also a talented singer and enjoys spending time with her puppy, Archie.

Hannah is in the office on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Eppie is the newest member of the G&M band, joining us in April 2022 as our full-time Trainee. Her varied and invaluable role involves client liaison, firm representation in document exchange, management of internal systems, reception cover, postage and office supplies, archiving and data entry as well as looking after staff wellbeing by keeping our office spaces spick and span and preparing the daily morning and afternoon tea.

And as though she wasn’t busy enough already, Eppie also finds time to plough through an online typing course and will soon commence studies in Business Administration through TAFE.

Eppie recently left school and has adapted seamlessly to working in a corporate environment. She enjoys the friendly and welcoming nature of the G&M office and appreciates the opportunity to learn a host of new skills and gain experience, particularly as she would like to manage her own business in future.

Driven by her core values of determination, growth, happiness and family, Eppie has become an highly appreciated member of G&M in no time.

Outside of office hours, Eppie enjoys catching up with her friends and spending time with family. She is also committed to the causes of poverty and homelessness and cares deeply about people who are unable to meet their basic human needs.