Charmian Holmes

Partner, Head of Funds and Financial Services The Fold Legal Pty Ltd

Sydney, NSW

About Charmian

Charmian Holmes is a highly esteemed partner and the Head of Funds and Financial Services at Hamilton Locke. Known for her approachable and pragmatic style, Charmian excels in navigating legal and compliance issues with a focus on consensus-building. Her expertise is widely recognised across the financial services sector, providing vital advice to a diverse group of clients, including insurance brokers, general insurers, underwriting agencies, fintechs, and insurtechs. Her skills are particularly valued in the realms of insurance product design and distribution, with a niche in innovative insurance solutions like parametric products and discretionary mutuals. Charmian has a strong track record of advising on financial services law and thrives on crafting new risk products such as peer-to-peer models. With a passion for nurturing business development, she offers strategic insights from seed funding stages through to acquisitions and IPOs. Startups frequently seek her guidance to refine and validate their ideas, benefiting from her creative legal solutions. Before joining Hamilton Locke, Charmian was a partner and co-founder of The Fold Legal, which merged with Hamilton Locke in September 2022. Her previous role at Phillips Fox Lawyers (now DLA Piper) involved significant contributions to the corporate and financial services team. Charmian holds a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the University of Queensland and is admitted to practice in Queensland. Her esteemed clients include Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance and Amtrust North America, where she has provided strategic advice on regulatory matters and product development. Her extensive career also includes roles such as Compliance Counsel at Gold Seal and Senior Associate at Phillips Fox, showcasing her comprehensive expertise and dedication to the legal profession.