Justine Finlay is the Managing Principal at Wightons Lawyers and is proud to lead a law firm that has been part of the Geelong landscape for over 130 years. Providing mentorship and guidance within the firm, Justine is a role model for the growing team of female lawyers at Wightons.
For Justine, she reflects on the need to lead by example, both within her team and within the community. “I really enjoy being able to share the knowledge I’ve gained through my career with our younger team members and watch them grow and develop.”
Within the Geelong region, Wightons Lawyers has a strong community connection, supporting charity organisations and sponsoring a number of local sporting clubs with women’s and girl’s teams in netball, football and cricket. Having the ability to provide assistance to local level sport for the benefit of young girls and women is important to the team at Wightons. Justine reflects “We are in a privileged position to be able to give back to the community and we pride ourselves on doing so in a number of different ways, including through sponsorship.”
This has extended to Geelong Venom, with Wightons choosing to sponsor the hometown team in the Women’s National Basketball League for the 2025/2026 season.
“We understand how important it is to support and foster women’s sport and we are thrilled that Geelong has a team in the national women’s basketball competition,” explains Justine. “It’s vital for young girls to see women participating in sport at all levels and it is exciting that the Geelong community can experience the country’s highest level of women’s basketball right at our doorstep. It was also a great way for our staff to attend games with their families.”
Charlotte Brancatisano is a lawyer at Wightons and is passionate about the importance of sport. “It’s a way to keep active, connect socially and be part of a team environment.”
It’s a passion that she has been able to combine with the law in her role at Wightons Lawyers. A member of the commercial law team, Charlotte is able to advise on legal transactions related to sport, including contracts, player agreements and broader disputes within sporting clubs or organisations.
In June 2025, Charlotte joined the Board for Active Geelong, an organisation that aims to inspire and motivate the entire Geelong community to move every day. “Active Geelong aims to make movement accessible to everyone in the region. There are many health benefits that come from moving which is what Active Geelong particularly promotes through their work”.
Charlotte is grateful for the opportunity to be involved, which reflects Wightons values and commitment to the community.
Article prepared and written by:
Charlotte Brancatisano (Lawyer); and
Justine Finlay (Managing Principal / Notary Public)
Article as seen in Times Group Geelong – IWD 2026 Feature
