Lauren Whitehead

Lauren is an experienced lawyer with a diverse background in projects, construction, infrastructure and general commercial law. She joined the firm in March 2023 as a partner in Anderson Lloyd’s Commercial team based in Auckland. Prior to this, Lauren was General Counsel (Acting) at KiwiRail, previously Senior Corporate Counsel at KiwiRail, and was a Senior Associate at another prominent New Zealand law firm and an international law firm based in Sydney, Australia.

Her areas of expertise include infrastructure, construction and general procurement, as well as projects generally across a variety of sectors, including forestry, fast moving commercial goods, industrial warehousing, agricultural produce, commercial property, rail, roading, housing, telecommunications, defence, and other social infrastructure including prisons and waste management. She has advised on a wide range of construction and infrastructure projects, including numerous Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and she has worked across both New Zealand and Australia.

Lauren was recently on the New Zealand Standards review committee for the revision to New Zealand’s most widely used construction standard – NZS3910:2023.

She holds a Juris Doctor from Columbia University in the City of New York, a LLB from University College London and a BCom in Marketing from the University of British Columbia. Lauren practiced in New South Wales for 9 years before being admitted in New Zealand in 2016. Lauren is a qualified mediator in both Sydney, Australia and New York City, and has experience in governance and company secretarial matters.

Lauren’s professional affiliations include membership in the New Zealand Law Society, the Auckland Women Lawyers Association, Society for Construction Law, Infrastructure New Zealand, the Women’s Infrastructure Network and an affiliate member of the Society for Construction Contract Practitioners. She has volunteered with the Mothers Project, a pro bono organisation that helps imprisoned mothers understand their responsibilities and rights regarding their children.

Publications

• The safety net: how to save a project from a falling contractor
• Facts not Favours: the importance of impartiality for expert witnesses in construction disputes
• Chambers Construction 2024 Global Practice Guide – New Zealand Construction Law and Practice chapter
• The New Standard for Construction roadshow
• The refurbished NZS 3910 – What’s new?
• Anderson Lloyd authors of the 2023 Chambers Global Practice Guide – New Zealand Construction Law chapter
• Meet the lawyers spearheading NZ’s latest projects
• Retention funds: New obligations and offences with teeth
• We are delighted to announce the appointment of two new partners
• The effect of contractor insolvency on subcontractor warranties
• Letters of intent: the risks of contracting without a contract
• Payment schedules: why they need to be Spotless
• The risks of attaching too many documents to a construction contract