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Jane Parker

Jane Parker

Partner Kaiurungi

she/her

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Nō Manawatū me Ōtākaro ahau
Engari kei Te Whanganui-a-Tara au e noho ana
Ko Jane Parker ahau
He rōia au ki MinterEllisonRuddWatts
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Jane is a specialist commercial, projects and technology lawyer with more than 25 years' experience. She advises government agencies, energy companies, financial institutions, defence and security organisations, and technology businesses across a broad range of commercial, procurement and technology matters, including digital transformation, cybersecurity, AI, governance, probity, funding arrangements, health and safety through supply chains, and large-scale services agreements. Having worked on both the supplier and customer sides, Jane understands how relationships, operations and commercial arrangements work together and helps clients achieve their objectives while managing risk appropriately.

Clients engage Jane when matters are high value, business critical or subject to significant scrutiny. She leads legal support for major procurements, critical infrastructure and strategic capability projects, helping clients navigate complexity, manage risk and reach practical outcomes. She is equally comfortable leading strategy and rolling up her sleeves on the drafting. Jane is particularly valued for generating practical options, getting the right level of detail into contracts and finding efficient paths to agreement that reduce the likelihood of disputes.

Jane advises throughout the lifecycle of major projects and programmes, from procurement strategy and governance design through to contract negotiation, implementation and ongoing management. She works closely with project teams, technical specialists and commercial stakeholders to keep legal advice connected to what is actually happening on the ground. Her technology expertise spans cloud services, AI, cybersecurity, software platforms, outsourcing, data management, digital transformation programmes and critical technology infrastructure.

Jane works extensively with public sector organisations and participants in regulated industries across the transport, energy, defence and security, financial services and technology sectors. She is experienced in government procurement frameworks and in navigating the requirements of security-sensitive environments. Much of her work centres on technology solutions, services and infrastructure critical to New Zealand’s economy and public services, where reliability, resilience, security and strong governance are essential.

Having worked in-house and in private practice in New Zealand and London, Jane understands the practical realities of delivering complex projects and managing competing stakeholder interests. She is known for being highly collaborative and outcomes focused, and for making interactions enjoyable and productive, whether she’s working with lawyers, engineers, project managers or executive leadership. Her well-timed humour and the occasional cheese scone have been known to help. Her clear, pragmatic advice helps clients make confident decisions and keep momentum on important programmes of work.

Jane is consistently recognised by Chambers Asia-Pacific, The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific and Best Lawyers for her work in technology and commercial matters. Chambers Asia-Pacific 2025 describes her as “an exceptional lawyer who is incredibly knowledgeable and very good to deal with”, while another client notes that she “is a proactive adviser who understands the subject matter. She offers good technical understanding and has a good appreciation of potential technical problem areas.” She is also a regular speaker and facilitator at technology, procurement and public sector contracting events.

Career highlights

Advising New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi and participating public transport authorities on the development and implementation of the National Ticketing Solution, a $1.4 billion programme to procure and implement ‘tap and go’ ticketing on public transport throughout New Zealand. The work includes leading advice on procurement strategy, preparing contract documentation, governance and funding arrangements, across a complex, multi-party contractual ecosystem. As lead legal advisor, she has helped resolve complex commercial and delivery issues across a large group of stakeholders throughout the programme lifecycle.

Acted for Meridian Energy on the Strategic Energy Reserve Huntly Firming Option, a nationally significant energy security initiative. Advised on a complex multi-party contractual framework, coordinating regulatory, competition and commercial risk issues to support long-term security of electricity supply.

Advised New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, a Crown entity, on the legal design and establishment of Invest New Zealand. Led advice on legislative, governance and operational arrangements required to separate functions, assets and personnel while supporting continuity through a significant government reform programme.

Advised NZX on the contractual framework supporting New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme managed auction service, including arrangements with the Ministry for the Environment and auction participants in a highly regulated and nationally important market.

Advised a major Australasian bank on the procurement and implementation of a cloud-based banking platform supporting regulated digital banking services. Led negotiations for critical technology agreements and helped align commercial arrangements with operational, regulatory and delivery requirements.

Advised REANNZ, a Schedule 4A Public Finance Act company, on strategic technology and commercial matters to enable universities and Crown research institutes to access mission-critical connectivity services and high-powered computing. Assisted REANNZ with asset transfer and stakeholder arrangements arising from sector reforms, as well as ongoing technology agreements with suppliers and clients.

Advising Alpine Energy across its regulated electricity distribution and data networks businesses. Supports strategic initiatives including corporate restructuring, major commercial arrangements, technology projects and regulatory matters, helping manage risk while advancing long-term business objectives.

Advised SMX on core commercial arrangements supporting cybersecurity services, cloud transformation and business growth initiatives. Led legal support for a significant SaaS migration and related technology contracting, helping strengthen risk management and support delivery of business-critical services.

Affiliations
  • Member, The Institute of Directors in New Zealand
Achievements and recognition
  • Recognised, Technology, Media & Telecommunications (TMT) , Chambers Asia-Pacific
  • Recognised team, Corporate/Commercial, Chambers Asia-Pacific
  • Leading Partner, Technology, Media & Telecommunications (TMT), The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific
  • Recognised, Information Technology Law, Recognised, The Best Lawyers, Best Lawyers