Nakita Wilkinson
Nakita Wilkinson
Biography
Nakita Wilkinson is a restructuring, insolvency and commercial dispute resolution lawyer based in Melbourne.
She focuses on corporate restructuring and insolvency, security enforcement, insolvent trading and voidable transaction claims, directors' obligations and duties, and advice on trusts, equitable rights and the Personal Properties Securities Act 2009 (Cth). Nakita has acted on many aspects of the collapse of some of Australia's largest corporations across a range of industries including retail, construction, mining, franchising, property development, financial services and agribusiness. She has also acted for many of Australia's first-tier lenders in secured and unsecured debt recoveries and refinances.
Nakita is an experienced litigator undertaking the necessary litigation arising from insolvency appointments as well as acting in numerous complex commercial litigation matters in both state and federal courts.
She joined the firm in 2021 from another large global law firm.
Professional experience
Representative experience
Representative experience
- McGrathNicol - advising the administrators, and now liquidators, of the Fox Friday Brewing Group on all aspects of the external administration and sale of the business.
- Cor Cordis - acting for the liquidators of 11 companies in the i-Prosperity Group which were placed into administration in July 2021. Creditors are claiming in excess of $350m arising from investments within the group of companies. Nakita has acted for the liquidators in the prosecution of numerous tracing and recovery claims, including a 3 week trial in the Federal Court of Australia, and continues to act for the liquidators in their recent proceedings against Crown Melbourne Limited where the liquidators are seeking to recover in excess of AUD56million. Nakita was also part of the team that successfully obtained and defended on appeal to the Full Federal Court of Australia, the longest extension of time granted by the courts for the liquidators to prosecute voidable transaction claims arising in the liquidation.
- KPMG - advising the receivers and managers appointed to BWX Ltd, a global cosmetics business listed on the ASX, on all aspects of the appointment, including contractual and commercial negotiations with global suppliers, securities advice, employees and their entitlements, director appointments and insurance.
- Corporate regulator - advising a corporate regulator in connection with ongoing investigations into a financial services company and its officers, employees, and representatives concerning its operation and promotion of managed investment schemes.
- KordaMentha - acting for the deed administrators or liquidators of 90 companies within the Grocon Group, one of Australia's largest construction and development players which is known for complex and landmark projects across numerous Australian cities. The ongoing engagement has covered many challenges including involvement in long-running litigation against Infrastructure NSW and applications to the Supreme Court of Victoria for bespoke orders dealing with the settlement of that litigation.
- McGrathNicol - acting for the administrators of AQC Dartbrook Pty Ltd and AQC Dartbrook Management Pty Ltd in connection with Dartbrook Coal Mine – a Hunter Valley thermal coal joint venture between ASX-listed Australian Pacific Coal and Tetra Resources.
- McConnell Dowell Constructors (Aus) Pty Ltd - successfully defending McConnell Dowell in parallel NSW Supreme Court proceedings for breach of contract and unfair preference claims arising from works undertaken at the Gladstone Liquefied Natural Gas project site in Roma, Qld, where damages sought were in excess of AUD100million and the trial exceeded 6 weeks.
- BDO - acted for the receivers and managers appointed to the Dundas Mining Group in connection with a large nickel mine in Tasmania.
- Syndicate Lenders - advised syndicate members on their AUD105million exposure to the developer, owner and operator of high tech solar powered green house facilities in South Australia.
- Technology retailer - acted for a major Australian technology retailer and consumer finance provider in the managed wind down of its business, involving the negotiated exit of its retail leasing sits, the rationalisation of its business, repayment of its financiers and the wind down and ultimate sale of its consumer loan book.
- Lender - advised on the exposure of a top four lender as the major secured creditor of the TexOnsite Group, which provided mobile calibration and high voltage testing for the mining, electrical and manufacturing sectors, and acted for the receivers and managers subsequently appointed by the secured creditor.
- Cor Cordis - advised the administrators of Omnifloor Australia Pty Ltd, a building company providing contract flooring services to major builders and developers Australia wide and the only surviving trading entity of the SWC Group collapse, on all aspects of the external administration including going trading and employee issues, security issues and the impact of COVID-19 as well as the negotiation and finalisation of the sale of the company's business.
- Lender - advised on the exposure of a top four lender as a major secured creditor of the MAdE Establishment Group, owned by high profile hospitality and restaurant owner George Calombaris.
- FTI Consulting - advised the administrator, then liquidators, of an Australian retail company on all aspects of the external administration, including statutory reporting obligations, ongoing trading and employee issues, recovery of millions in voidable transactions, and a significant insolvent trading claim against the company's former director.
- KordaMentha – acted for the receivers and managers of Gunns Limited and Willmott Forests and their subsidiaries seeking to recover secured loans relating to managed forestry and horticultural managed investment schemes.
Education
Education
- ARITA Advanced Certificate in Insolvency, University of Technology Sydney (2019)
- Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice, College of Law (2017)
- Bachelor of Laws (First Class Honours) and Bachelor of Science with Distinction (Biology), Deakin University (2015)
Admissions
Admissions
- Supreme Court of Victoria 2017
- High Court of Australia 2017
Publications
Publications
Time is almost up on the ipso facto grandfathering clock | Touchstone, May 2023
The continued role of the Australian judiciary in the shaping of voluntary administration processes during the COVID-19 pandemic | NRF International Restructuring Newswire, July 2021
Memberships and activities
Memberships and activities
- Law Institute of Victoria
- Victorian Women's Lawyers
- Women in Insolvency and Restructuring Victoria
- Turnaround Management Association Australia
Insights and news
Subscribe to our insights
Stay up to date with the latest publications, podcasts, webinars and events