Profile
“I wanted to be in charge of my own destiny, and I knew this meant building a legal practice for like-minded people like myself who share the same passions, ethics and ethos”
Anne Frances O’Donoghue,
Immigration Solutions Lawyers
Zile Yu is the Managing Partner of Quantum Law Group and founded the firm at the age of 28. Under his leadership, Quantum Law Group has been recognised as a Boutique Firm of the Year 2023 by Australasian Lawyer, Australian Law Awards 2023 Dispute Resolution and Litigation Team of the Year, APAC Dispute Resolution Firm of the Year 2023 and 2022, APAC Insider’s Australian Enterprise Awards 2023 for Winner of Best Legal Advice Experts – Sydney, and APAC Insider’s Legal Awards 2022 for Best Dispute Resolution Firm - Australia, Top Boutique Law Firm in 2022 and 2021, an Excellence Awardee in Technology and Innovation 2022 by Australasian Lawyer and as a finalist in Boutique Law Firm of Year in the 2022 and 2021 Australian Law Awards, the 2023 and 2022 City Suburbs Local Business Awards, the 2023 and 2022 Small Business Champions Award and the 2022 Women's Small Business Champions Award.
Zile is also currently a Consultant at Meridian Lawyers, where he consults with the management team and the Sydney Commercial Group. At the time of his appointment, he was the youngest person in the history of the firm to hold the title of consultant, at 28 years of age. He served as the Head of Innovation and Special Projects at Meridian Lawyers between 2018 and 2019, during which he was responsible for developing and implementing the firm’s online revenue generation strategy. Meridian Lawyers is a national law firm with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Newcastle and Perth.
Zile is also currently a Lecturer at the College of Law in the Legal Practice Management Course for Partners and senior lawyers intending to start their own law firms or practices to remove condition 3 from their NSW practising certificates. He is sought after for his expertise in legal technology and disruptive innovation in the law. He has been featured in or presented at numerous conferences and publications, including the Legal Innovation & Tech Fest 2023, Australasian Lawyer, Boutique Lawyer Show, BenchTV, Tax Talks, the Global Legal Hackathon, the Australian LegalTech Summit 2019, the Boutique Law Summit 2021, the Centre for Legal Innovation and Lawyers Weekly.
Since starting his own firm, he has handled or advised on disputed and litigious matters involving a total of over $117m at stake, and he has also handled or advised on criminal matters totalling over 575 years of imprisonment cumulatively. To date, he has never lost a case at a hearing in his civil litigation matters; none of his clients have received any custodial sentences in his criminal defence matters; and all transactional matters have been successfully completed. His family law practice has achieved, on average, approximately 80% of child spend-time arrangements and approximately 80% of financial distributions from the asset pool of the parties in favour of his clients.
Zile’s contributions and work have been recognised in 31 awards, including being recognised as one of the Most Influential Lawyers of 2023 and 2022 and Rising Star 2023 and 2022 by Australasian Lawyer, being the winner of the Sole Practitioner of the Year Award in the 2020 Australian Law Awards, and being the Winner in the 2022 ALPMA Awards in Excellence in Innovation and Technology. He is listed in the Australian Law Awards 2023 as Innovator of the Year and Partner of the Year in the Insolvency, Criminal and Construction and Infrastructure categories. He was also listed as a finalist in the 2022 Lawyers Weekly Partner of the Year Awards (in the Litigation, Criminal Law and Construction and Infrastructure categories), 2022 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards (Criminal Law), 2022 ALTA Awards Change Maker and Transformer categories, 2022 ALPMA Awards in Future Leader, Executive of the Year and Outstanding General Contribution categories, Managing Partner of the Year Award in the 2021 Australian Law Awards, the 2021 Partner of the Year Awards in the Criminal Partner of the Year, Real Estate Partner of the Year, Innovator of the Year and New Partner of the Year categories, the 2021 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards in the Real Estate and Criminal categories, the 2020 Partner of the Year Awards in both the Innovator of the Year and New Partner of the Year categories, the 2020 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards (Dispute Resolution and Litigation), the Rising Star of the Year in the 2019 Australian Law Awards and the 2018 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards (Real Estate and Construction).
Zile is also the Founder of Quantum Cover, a legal technology start-up that has achieved the 2022 5-Star Service Provider Award by Australasian Lawyer and is the winner of the Forefront of Change as well as a finalist in the New Kid on the Block categories in the 2022 ALTA Awards.
Suite 1503, Level 15, 447 Kent Street, Sydney, NSW 2000
02 9188 8866
zile@quantumlaw.com.au
linkedin.com/in/zile-yu
quantumlaw.com.au
Zile Yu
Founder and Managing Partner
Quantum Law Group
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Bio
Milestones
Profile
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Bio
Milestones
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Bio
Milestones
“I am strongly of the belief that skills can be taught, but you cannot teach passion. Passion has to come from within”
Anne Frances O’Donoghue,
Immigration Solutions Lawyers
2018–2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2018: Zile Yu was listed as a finalist in the 2018 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards (Construction and Real Estate)
2019: Zile Yu was listed as a finalist in the Rising Star of the Year category in the 2019 Australian Law Awards
2018–
2019
Zile Yu was the winner of the Sole Practitioner of the Year Award in the 2020 Australian Law Awards
Zile Yu was listed as a finalist in the 2020 Partner of the Year Awards in both the Innovator of the Year and New Partner of the Year categories
Zile Yu was listed as a finalist in the 2020 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards (Dispute Resolution and Litigation)
2020
Zile Yu was listed as a finalist for the Managing Partner of the Year Award in the 2021 Australian Law Awards
Zile Yu was listed as a finalist in the 2021 Partner of the Year Awards in the Criminal Partner of the Year, Real Estate Partner of the Year, Innovator of the Year and New Partner of the Year categories
Zile Yu was listed as a finalist in the 2021 Lawyers Weekly 30 Under 30 Awards in the Real Estate and Criminal categories
2021
Zile Yu recognised as one of the Most Influential Lawyers
Zile Yu recognised as a 2022 Rising Star by Australasian Lawyer
Zile Yu was the winner of the 2022 ALPMA Awards for Excellence in Innovation and Technology
Zile Yu was the Founder of Quantum Cover, a legal technology start-up that has achieved the 2022 5-Star Service Provider Award by Australasian Lawyer
2022
Zile Yu recognised as one of the Most Influential Lawyers
Zile Yu recognised as a 2023 Rising Star by Australasian Lawyer
Zile Yu was listed in the Australian Law Awards 2023 as Innovator of the Year and Partner of the Year (in the Insolvency, Criminal and Construction and Infrastructure categories)
2023
Milestones
Aug 2022
Milestones
Sept 2021
Feb 2022
Apr 2022
Jul 2022
Aug
2022
Suncorp Bank introduces Solar Home Bonus offer for customers who are choosing renewable energy for their homes
Sept 2021
Month-on-month market share growth commences
Feb 2022
Suncorp Bank wins the Canstar award for most outstanding value in investment loans
Apr 2022
Suncorp Bank wins Money Magazine’s Bank of the Year and Business Bank of the Year awards for the fifth year in a row
Jul 2022
Suncorp Bank’s turnaround times are the lowest they have ever been. The lender becomes Australia’s first certified carbon neutral bank for both its operation and transaction services
Aug 2022
Milestones
“My approach in my career and practice is very hands-on, collaborative and encouraging of women in their passions and pursuits,” O’Donoghue says. “I am strongly of the belief that skills can be taught, but you cannot teach passion. Passion has to come from within. So, my passion-forward approach sees me collaborating with my staff and encouraging new learning opportunities, as this is the fabric of my career progression and success.”
In 2022, Immigration Solutions Lawyers made history by working with Baroness Helena Kennedy to help Afghan women judges obtain permanent visas. O’Donoghue received a personal request from the International Bar Association (IBA) and Baroness Helena Kennedy KC, who had evacuated several Afghan women judges, prosecutors, activists and their families from Afghanistan to Greece in 2021 and 2022 during the early days of the Taliban takeover.
Twenty Afghan women, including judges, prosecutors, activists, and their families, applied for temporary visas (subclass 449 visas) to settle in Australia and escape persecution. Immigration Solutions Lawyers staff helped them apply to the immigration minister and was able to secure visa grants for all 90 applicants, including family members. Remarkably, the entire group was ultimately successful in being granted permanent residence visas.
“In order to achieve client outcomes, you need to rock the boat, even if the advice is don’t rock the boat,” O’Donoghue says.
O’Donoghue, who was appointed in 2022 as the diversity and inclusion officer of the Global Employment Institute of the International Bar Association, is a frequent speaker on the international stage.
Some of her notable sessions include:
In 2022 and 2023, Immigration Solutions Lawyers co-authored Who’s Who Legal Corporate Immigration Review, contributing to Australia’s corporate immigration 2022 and 2023 updates, as well as co-authoring the international comparative legal guides expert analysis chapter for the Global Overview on Modern Slavery and Corporate Supply Chain Compliance.
O’Donoghue also contributed to the Law Council of Australia’s written submission in response to the issues paper regarding the three-year statutory review of the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth).
In 2023, O’Donoghue spoke at the Thomson Reuters Skilled Migration and Workforce Planning Conference, where she presented on addressing concerns about the exploitation of overseas workers and tackling vulnerabilities to modern slavery, for which she received commendable feedback.
O’Donoghue was admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of Victoria in 1981, the Supreme Court of New South Wales in 1987 and the High Court of Australia in 1982. In 1998, she received her specialist accreditation as an immigration lawyer from the NSW Law Society, and she has been instrumental in developing the field of immigration law in NSW. She was the founding vice president of the Migration Law Committee of the Law Council of Australia.
The International Bar Association’s Annual Miami Conference 2022: spoke at the three sessions surrounding remote work in Australia, modern slavery’s non-punishment principle, and how the Nagoya Protocol is implemented in Australia
The International Bar Association’s Immigration 10th Biennial London Conference 2022: moderated and spoke on behalf of Australia’s efforts in Afghanistan and Ukraine, whereby two Afghan Women judges were delighted to speak on their gruelling yet inspiring journey
The 35th LAWASIA 2022 Conference in Sydney: spoke on Australia’s efforts to combat modern slavery and the non-punishment principle, given her expertise in the area as a member of the IBA Working Group on Modern Slavery Corporate Supply Chain Compliance and given Immigration Solutions Lawyers’ contribution to a submission for the Law Council of Australia in response to the public consultation paper on the national action plan to combat modern slavery in 2020–24