Kate Barry-Piceno has extensive experience in the area of resource management law, and is involved in a wide range of projects in the Tauranga and Bay of Plenty region. She also has considerable experience in administration and employment law.

As a subject, environmental law has grown hugely in the last 20 years since the Resource Management Act was first enacted, and is fuelled by a never-ending creation of new policies, plans, regulations and Central Government legislation. A subject once understood to be related to issues of pollution occurring overseas and nature conservation, New Zealand businesses have now come to understand that environmental controls and regulations affect all major areas of business including land development, transport, industry and commercial business regulation, energy resources, climate change and natural hazards. This expansion and regulatory control will only continue to have a major impact on all business decisions.

Kate’s specialist focus avoids the overheads of an “all services” legal firm. This means that Kate can pass on the benefits of those efficiencies to her business clients through concise, strategic and informed advice. Highly specialist input on all environmental matters at a genuinely good value rate means that Kate’s services are unique. Businesses in the Bay of Plenty have long been crying out for nationally recognised specialist expertise to be available in the Bay so as to avoid the costs of Auckland-style inflated charge out rates to obtain that input.

Kate’s input and involvement recognises that most clients and businesses already have lawyers in place for their property, corporate and other mainstream legal work. When businesses need an environmental lawyer, they normally just want an add-on specialist who won’t cut across existing legal ties and can work well with other law practitioners or consultants working with their businesses. Kate is able to do this and applies a “horses for courses” approach such that she will engage the appropriate consultant or planning expert and make suggestions for persons to be involved if they can provide the needed service at a better cost.