Member Profiles

Croes Wever Ruiz Attorneys At Law was founded in 1970, and is presently the longest-standing partnership under the jurisdiction of the Common Court of Appeals of Aruba, Curaçao, St. Maarten and of Bonaire, St. Eustatius, and Saba. We are admitted to the exercise of legal profession in Aruba, Curaçao, St. Maarten, and of Bonaire, St. Eustatius, and Saba. The firm has established through the years a broad spectrum of quality legal services, mainly corporate and business law with the added value of ATS Corporate and Trust Services under one roof. Additionally, since 1995 we have also been offering our domestic and international taxation services. Our clientele in both the law and tax fields consists of corporate and private clients mainly in North America, Europe, and Latin American, including top international banks, insurance companies as well as hospitality enterprises.

With qualifications in both Business and Law, Phil uses his 30 + years of industry experience to advise clients across all fields of commercial operations including tourism, commercial law, and workplace relations.  Recognised repeatedly as a “Leading Agribusiness Lawyer” by Doyle’s Guide, Phil is also a specialist in Agribuisiness, assisting clients with negotiation of access and compensation agreements, land clearing, grain contracts and trading, farm sales & leasing, farming succession and animal welfare matters.  Having worked in both national and local law firms, Phil has appeared before Fair Work Australia, the Federal Magistrates Court, and the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission. Phil is a member of the Law Society of Western Australia and a Director of the Prostate and Breast Cancer Foundation. The Firm Since our establishment in 2014, we have proudly provided a suite of specialised legal services to both individuals and businesses across Western Australia, while remaining professional and welcoming to our clients like you.  By combining four decades worth of experience our team has accumulated, we’ve consistently delivered the best possible results for our clients. Our modern legal minds and people-oriented attitude makes us the niche powerhouse that we are – learn more about who we are and who we support. 

Scott is the Head of Superannuation & Wealth Management at Thomson Geer and is an industry leading financial services and commercial lawyer. He has comprehensive experience in establishment, licensing, governance, administration, distribution, restructuring, investments and tax matters associated with superannuation, funds management and life insurance products. He is a key adviser for many of Australia's largest corporate, industry and public sector schemes. Scott is a regular speaker at conferences, is the editor and author of many texts and articles and is an active member of industry associations including the APRA Superannuation Lawyers Liaison Forum. He is an emeritus member of the Law Council of Australia Superannuation Lawyers Committee. Scott is a fellow of ASFA and Deputy Chair of ASFA's Queensland executive committee. Scott is a current editor of the LexisNexis Superannuation Law Bulletin. He was the lead editor of Wickens the Law of Life Insurance in Australia from 1998 to 2008.

Providing easy to understand comprehensive advice while taking into account key issues has been the driving force of Jim’s success as a specialist commercial and litigation lawyer for more than 46 years. His managerial responsibilities reflect the invaluable skills he brings to our practice. Jim is currently the Head of the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Group in our Sydney office. He is a previous National Chairman and National Managing Partner of the firm and was also Chief Legal Representative of the Hunt & Hunt Shanghai office. With clients spanning Australia and the globe, Jim’s commercial law expertise is widespread, covering legal, strategic, commercial, governance and reputation issues. Jim’s in-depth knowledge of international legal issues is second to none. As a Director and former Chairman of Interlaw and through his wide network of contacts in more than 115 major global cities, Jim has provided commercial advice to clients for over 46 years ranging from negotiating joint ventures and resolving disputes, to mediation, litigation, and arbitration. China is undoubtedly his stronghold. In 2006, Jim was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for service to international relations, particularly the development of legal and business links with China and in 2012 UNSW recognised his work in China with the award of Doctor of Laws Honoris Causa. Jim is currently the New South Wales Special Envoy for China, and he is the immediate past President of the Australia China Business Council NSW branch. He is one of seven Australians appointed to the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) panel of arbitrators, and is the only Australian appointed to the Shanghai Arbitration Commission. Jim regularly presents seminars on China and assists Austrade programs in Beijing and China. Jim was appointed by NSW Premier Mike Baird and served for some years as the NSW Special Envoy for China his role was to enhance and develop two-way trade and investment between NSW and China and in particular between NSW and its sister state Guangdong Province. Jim appears as Counsel on matters in the Supreme Court, Federal Court and, at times, the High Court. A selection of the matters on which Jim represents his clients include: Construction – the Moomba–Sydney Gas Pipeline and the Sydney Superdome Defence – acting for Australian Submarine Corporation on many issues including contractual matters and intellectual property and for Thales on a tender dispute concerning The Australian Advanced Air Traffic System (TAAATS) Trade Practices – advising on exclusive dealing and misleading conduct and constitutional issues, for example Jewel Foodstores on interstate trade in milk Corporations Law – including ASIC investigations Royal Commissions – appearing as Counsel for clients called before the Royal Commission into Institutional Abuse of Children in several case studies over many weeks. Independent Commission Against Corruption & Law Enforcement Conduct Commission – appearing before these Commissions as Counsel for politicians , police officers and other persons of interest Insolvencies – acting for the US receiver appointed by the US Securities & Exchange Commission regarding a US$300 million Ponzi scheme and most recently for the liquidator in recovery actions against the Obeid family Appearing as counsel in Beijing on international trade disputes before CIETAC   in Chinese Arbitrations for Elders Limited relating to the export of cattle to China and Australia wool exporters Enforcement of foreign arbitration awards. Jim is also a mediator, most recently, a Court appointed mediator in a complex commercial dispute before the Supreme Court of NSW involving companies and assets in China and Australia.  Jim’s corporate experience includes over 12 years working with government as Chair of the Commonwealth company responsible for the accreditation of aged care faculties in Australia where he reported directly the Minister of the day and worked closely with Commonwealth government departments.

Liam advises leading financial services clients in relation to a wide range of funds management, regulatory structuring, licensing and compliance matters. He is dedicated to partnering with his clients to structure, enhance and protect their businesses in this challenging space by providing exceptional technical advice in a commercial and innovative way. His clients comprise of financial services firms, including funds, banks and other lenders. His experience spans periods working in London, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. He has four university qualifications, including an LLM from Sydney University (advanced corporate governance) and Liam presents, commentates in the media e.g. the AFR and Australian and writes regular articles / maintains a weekly blog on funds management, regulatory and compliance issues. (See the news section.) He is a member of several committees e.g. Queensland Law Society’s Banking & Finance Committee, specialist think tanks e.g. Australian Centre for Financial Studies and sits as a director on a local charity board. He created and lectures the financial services regulation law course at Griffith University, and is an author for LexisNexis. On the non-contentious side, Liam has considerable experience with structuring, licensing applications, privacy, risk, governance and regulatory compliance. On the contentious side, he has acted in many regulatory inquiries across multiple international jurisdictions. He has worked for leading banks, funds, corporates and individuals.  Recent mandates include the creation of a wholesale bank, the creation of retail / wholesale funds, assisting crypto businesses to set up, implementation of major regulatory reforms e.g. Financial Accountability Regime, creation of multiple financial and crypto products, AML / CTF frameworks reviews, financial  services and credit licensing obligations. Liam has also structured and undertaken a wide range of internal investigations and risk reviews for clients in Australia, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions.