Janis Donnelly-Coode

Panellist – Wills & Estate Stream

Principal Lawyer for Wealth Adviser Legal Services

Janis is passionate about Estate Planning and Estate law, and is currently working in house as the Principal Lawyer for Wealth Adviser Legal Services. She also prepares CPD events around the pragmatics of Estates, and she takes direct clients in Estate Planning and Estate matters through her ILP.

Previously Janis had been practicing in mostly suburban, generalist practice since the introduction of the GST drove her out of tax law back in the year 2000. Most of her career was spent in suburban law, in smaller generalist firms, including significant time in property law, family law, and administrative law. She has always acted in Estates, and remains passionate about helping families to have proper, comprehensive planning around their assets. So many people plan for tax, or retirement, but make no real plan around their Estate or potential loss of capacity. Janis wants the client to understand what their plan is, so they can continue to make good decisions around it long after they have prepared pieces of paper, rather than simply convincing clients that it is very complex.

When she isn’t working Janis runs a small Facebook group for Estate Lawyers, and tries to get to the gym or the golf course. She is also trying to find time to re-start her advocacy work in high schools around “No Respect, No Relationship” discussing the importance of respectful relationships with a particular focus on identifying domestic violence or other dangerous relationship imbalances.

Closing the Gap

Collaboration between Family Law and Estate Planning professionals strengthens outcomes and prevents costly oversights.

Planning in Transition

Practical steps for urgent wills, guardianship planning, and Financial Agreements during major life changes.

Leading with Empathy

Understanding how emotion and grief influence client decisions — and how to respond with compassion and clarity.

Love, Legacy & the Law: Future-Proofing Families in a Changing World

Hosted by Tara Lucke, this panel brings together practitioners working at the intersection of Family Law and Estate Planning to examine how families can be better protected through separation, incapacity, conflict and loss.

Janis brings a grounded estate planning perspective to the discussion, focusing on where estate plans commonly unravel during periods of instability or major life change. She will explore the role of urgent wills, guardianship and capacity planning, and the challenges that arise for blended and modern families when planning has not kept pace with their circumstances.

Drawing on her experience advising families and working alongside financial advisers, Janis will also speak to the importance of collaboration between Family Law and Estate practitioners, and why clear, understandable planning is critical when clients are navigating grief, uncertainty and long-term decision-making.