Georgiena Ryan (GAICD, LLB, MComLaw, GradDip (Applied Tax Law) Acc Spec Business Law)

I am a passionate and experienced advocate for rural and regional legal practice and the diverse communities we serve.

I am committed to ensuring the Council of the NSW Law Society represents all the profession but at heart my commitment is to ensure that the lawyers who practice beyond the Blue Mountains are fully represented at Council.

Priorities
• Practical support for law firms - Supporting sustainable and professionally fulfilling legal practice with practical business management support particularly for smaller firms
• Technology for the benefit of all - Navigating technological change so as to ensure that it advances all practices, large and small whilst maintaining trust and professional standards
• Increased funding for legal services - Working with the Law Society in its lobbying efforts to increase funding for courts, Legal Aid and for legal services for the “missing middle”
• Decentralisation - Working with the Law Society to lobby against the increased centralisation and digitisation of government services where it decreases access to justice for regional and disadvantaged sections of our communities and makes the task of providing legal services more difficult

My background
I am recognised for my pragmatic and commercially focused approach to legal practice which I hope to bring to Council. I have completed the AICD Company Directors Course and in my previous in-house roles I have served as director on the boards of the Australian subsidiary companies of a multi-national agribusiness investment group and worked alongside the company secretary of a multinational bank. Those roles also involved working closely with some of the top tier firms providing some insight into the challenges that face large legal practices.

I have served on the Rural Issues Committee of the NSW Law Society for over 20 years. One of the joys of this committee has been the forging of relationships with other practitioners across all of New South Wales. Over the years I have seen colleagues deal with the difficulties of droughts, floods and bushfires and know just how important it is for the Law Society to support practitioners when challenging circumstances arise.

I am an accredited Business Law Specialist with a practice based in Wagga Wagga. It focuses on property, commercial and succession law, with particular expertise in complex transactions involving significant property, agricultural, water and business assets. Our clients range from multinational organisations to privately owned businesses, and family enterprises.

I was awarded the Committee Member of the Year in 2025 and the Regional Women Lawyer of the Year 2023 Women Lawyers NSW. I have also served on the Business Law Committee and the Succession and Elder Law Committee. My commitment to regional practices has also included being involved in various other working groups within the Law Society including most recently the AML-CTF Reforms.

My husband and I reside on a family farm in the south-west slopes of New South Wales and are heavily involved in our local community. Our two young adult children are currently at university living their best lives.

A diverse Council must include a strong rural and regional voice. I would be honoured to fulfill that role.