LLM, LLB, BEcon
Corporate & Commercial Law, Competition & Consumer Law, Governance
Suzanne Howari is a Special Counsel and senior corporate and commercial lawyer with over 12 years’ experience advising on competition and consumer law, regulatory investigations, legal risk management and corporate governance.
She advises boards, General Counsel and executive teams on complex regulatory matters involving the ACCC, ASIC and ASX, including enforcement investigations, disclosure obligations, governance and enterprise legal risk.
Suzanne regularly supports organisations navigating high-stakes regulatory scrutiny, including competition law issues, consumer law compliance, and reputational and media-sensitive investigations.
Her expertise in this area has been recognised through her selection as a Finalist in the 2024 Women in Law Awards in the ‘Thought Leader’ category for her work in regulatory investigations and legal risk management.
She is also a Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia, a recognised Risk and Governance Professional, and holds the Certificate in Governance & Risk Management from the Governance Institute of Australia, reflecting her deep expertise in governance frameworks and risk practice.
Suzanne’s experience includes:
Led an ASIC regulatory investigation and litigation involving the advertising of financial products, supporting a listed company through enforcement scrutiny, court proceedings and regulatory risk management.
Coordinated multi-disciplinary teams including in-house counsel, external lawyers, auditors and experts to manage complex regulatory and reputational issues, media scrutiny and disclosure considerations.
Acted on a multi-jurisdictional cartel conduct and resale price maintenance investigation for a multinational organisation under regulatory scrutiny.
Managed internal and external teams across jurisdictions, regulatory engagement and employee cooperation processes, and developed enterprise legal risk and governance frameworks and delivered training to embed compliance with competition law obligations.
Advised on merger clearance and competition law risk under Australia’s ACCC merger control regime, including whether ACCC approval or waiver was required.
Provided strategic advice on deal structuring, serial acquisitions, market power and competition risk in collaboration with commercial and product teams.
Advised boards and audit and risk committees on regulatory exposure under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) and the Australian Consumer Law, including advertising, pricing, consumer disputes and outcomes and product recalls.
Supported regulator engagement strategies and implemented governance frameworks and compliance programs, including training for in-house and frontline teams.
Advised on allegations of anti-competitive conduct and exclusive dealing arising from competitor complaints to the regulator.
Managed regulator engagement and developed tailored compliance training aligned with the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) to strengthen organisational compliance and reduce regulatory risk.
Advised on national advertising campaigns (including digital and social media platforms), compliance with the Competition and Consumer Act and the Australian Consumer Law and responding to regulator allegations regarding misleading or deceptive conduct.
Managed regulator engagement and developed advertising governance and risk frameworks for marketing and product teams.
