Catherine Sedgley is a Senior Associate within Coleman Greig's Commercial Advice team. Having assisted clients across a wide range of commercial legal areas, she has developed a passion and a particularly high level of expertise and practical knowledge in the areas of brand protection, intellectual property and franchising law.

Catherine is extremely well-versed in all aspects of Australian and international trade mark law and is an experienced advocate in oppositions, removal actions and other matters before the Australian Registrar of Trade Marks and the New Zealand Commissioner of Trade Marks. Catherine also has experience in representing clients at trial in the Federal Circuit Court and the Federal Court of Australia relating to trade marks, including shape and colour trade marks. She recognises the critical importance of brand owners firstly identifying their intellectual property and then securing the correct level of protection for their intellectual property in the jurisdictions where they conduct their business, and more importantly in respect of the goods and services they offer.

In addition to her passion for protecting brands and intellectual property for her clients, Catherine specialises in providing advice, support and guidance to those operating in the Australian franchise industry. Having worked with both start-up and established franchise networks and both franchisors and franchisees, she has a thorough understanding of the franchising industry and is in a unique position when it comes to assisting her clients.

Whether it be advising a prospective franchisee wishing to join a network or assisting a franchisor to breach or even terminate one of their franchisees, Catherine understands and appreciates the relationship between the franchisor and franchisee from both perspectives. One of Catherine’s strengths is her ability to explain and break down any legalese contained in the franchise documentation ensuring the parties have a clear understanding of their rights and any obligations owed to the other party before entering into the franchise agreement.

Catherine’s unique approach to her work is centred around building a long-term relationship with the client and understanding the client’s business, their needs and the industry in which they operate and then tailoring a solution or developing a strategy to address the legal issues they face.

Catherine is both Coleman Greig's key representative for dealings with the Franchise Council of Australia, and is a member of the Intellectual Property of Australia and New Zealand (IPSANZ).

In her spare time, Catherine serves on the ERSES Advisory Board for St Gabriel’s School in Castle Hill and St Edmund’s College in Wahroonga and enjoys spending time outdoors and baking desserts.