Justin Chua, Lawyer and Mediator

Justin Chua (蔡智勋) is a lawyer and mediator at Chua Tan Associates in Melbourne. He is a second-generation lawyer who practises alongside his parents in the family firm, which has practised since 1990. Justin was admitted to practice in 2020. His work centres on cross-border estates and succession for Chinese and Asian families, estate planning and family governance, and the resolution of estate, family business and family law disputes, both through mediation and, where needed, in court. He writes most of the articles on this website.

Many of the families Justin works with have assets, relatives and advisers in more than one country. His aim is to explain Australian law clearly, in English or Mandarin, and to help families make decisions that hold together across jurisdictions and across generations.

Areas of work

• Cross-border estates and succession for Chinese and Asian families, including estates with assets or beneficiaries in Australia and overseas.
• Estate planning, trusts and family governance, including Wills, powers of attorney, trusts and planning for the next generation of a family business.
• Estate, family business and family law disputes, including disputes between family members, co-owners and shareholders.
• Mediation, including family business mediation, family group mediation, and family law and estate mediations. Justin runs mediations online and in person, in English and Mandarin.
• Advocacy: Justin acts as a solicitor advocate, appearing for clients himself.

Qualifications and accreditations

• Admitted to practice, 2020
• Juris Doctor, RMIT University
• Bachelor of Commerce (accounting major), University of Melbourne
• Nationally Accredited Mediator (NMAS/AMDRAS), accredited since 2021
• Registered Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner
• Family law arbitrator
• Parenting coordinator
• Collaborative practice professional
• STEP Affiliate (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners)
• Accredited Family Business Advisor, trained through the Family Business Association and the University of Adelaide
• Member of mediation panels in Australia, including those of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory, the Land Court of Queensland, and legal aid mediation panels

Holding accreditations as a mediator, family dispute resolution practitioner, arbitrator, parenting coordinator and collaborative practice professional means Justin can help families choose the process that suits their dispute, rather than fitting every dispute into the same process.

Background

Before entering law, Justin worked in finance in Hong Kong. He has also owned and operated businesses, including a real estate agency (as a licensed real estate agent), a restaurant and accommodation businesses. That experience, together with his accounting studies, means he is comfortable working with financial statements, valuations and the commercial realities that sit behind many family and business disputes.

Justin has studied or worked in mainland China (including an exchange in Shanghai), Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Vietnam, Myanmar and India, and has worked in law firms in Myanmar and Vietnam. He has extended family in Malaysia. This background helps him understand how families from across Asia think about property, family businesses and inheritance, and the expectations they bring to an Australian legal process.

In the community, Justin is the founder of the Chinese Australian Lawyers Network (CALN) and a co-founder of DragoNation Australia, a Dragon 100 alumni group.

Languages

English; Mandarin (professional working proficiency). Justin mediates in English and Mandarin.

Articles

Justin writes the legal guides published on this website. They explain Australian law in plain language for families, executors, business owners and their advisers in Australia and overseas, and are general information rather than legal advice. Good places to start are:

• Australian legal guide for mainland Chinese and Taiwanese families, our cornerstone guide to estates, property, family law and related issues for families with ties to mainland China and Taiwan.
• Mediation services, which explains how Justin’s mediations work, from preparation to settlement.

To speak with Justin, please contact our Melbourne office on +61 3 9602 3988 or submit an enquiry.