Matthew Thornton-Dibb

Special Counsel
Norton Rose Fulbright Australia

Sydney
Australia
T:+61 2 9330 8181
Sydney
Australia
T:+61 2 9330 8181
Matthew Thornton-Dibb

Matthew Thornton-Dibb

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Biography

Matthew Thornton-Dibb is an environmental, climate change and ESG lawyer in our Sydney office. 

Matthew recently joined from another global firm in Sydney.  Before that, Matthew also practiced as an environmental lawyer at Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa.  

Matthew has significant experience in all facets of environmental law, including relating to contamination, waste, water, biodiversity, air emissions, and ESG and climate change.  This includes:

  • advisory work relating to the development of major energy transition projects (CSP, Solar PV, hydro, gas, wind, WtE, and biomatter);
  • transaction based work and due diligence relating to conventional and renewable energy, agriculture, chemical manufacturing, and food manufacturing;  
  • contamination related work, concerning PFAS contaminated sites across Australia. This includes advisory work and litigation in various courts across Australia
  • advisory work relating to waste management, air emissions, biodiversity offsetting, carbon offsetting and carbon credits, water law.
  • ESG advisory work including in relation to greenwashing and climate-related financial disclosure.

Matthew also has significant experience in planning law in NSW, having acted for numerous local councils in this space at a previous firm.

Professional experience

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  • Completed 4 courses of the LPAB/LEC Diploma in Law as part of a non-award requalification process (South Africa to NSW, Australia).  Courses completed: Australian Constitutional law, Real Property, Legal Ethics, Equity
  • Master of Law (LLM) in Environmental law, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, 2013
  • Bachelor of Law (LLB), University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, 2010
  • Supreme Court of New South Wales 2021
  • Attorney qualified in the Republic of South Africa 2014

  • Advised Commonwealth Government agency on the design and implementation of its national PFAS management strategy, including advising on third party nuisance and damages claims.  This appointment spanned advising on all PFAS related issues affecting the organisation, including litigation, site investigations and remediation plans, public communications and stakeholder management, board reporting, and strategy development and implementation.

  • Advised international construction company on liability for asbestos contamination of various sites in Perth, WA.

  • Advised international construction company on regulatory investigation by VicEPA in relation to water pollution incident.

  • Advised global industrials company on the export of cullet (waste glass) from various ports in Australia.

  • Advised international property development company on greenwashing risks and governance systems, and conducted a review of legal readiness for climate-related financial disclosure under IFRS S2.

  • Advised various local councils on waste collection and disposal services contracts.

  • Advised various developers, financers, and sponsors in relation to utility scale energy generation projects.

  • Undertaken buyer-side environmental legal due diligence of a waste management company.

  • The Best Lawyers in Australia: Ones to Watch Planning and Environment, Best Lawyers, 2022-2023

Studdert J, Thornton-Dibb M & Govender A, Environmental Law NSW, Thomson Reuters (2023).

Governance Institute of Australia, Greenwashing  - A governance perspective (awaiting publication). Adapted with permission from a CGI UK publication Tackling Greenwashing from a Governance Perspective.

Climate-related financial disclosure in Australia: Treasury commences second round of consultation (July 2023) 

New Law in Europe to Fight Deforestation: Impacts and Opportunities for Australian Producers, Companies and Consumers (June 2023) 

The rise and risk of 'greenwashing' (April 2023)

NSW EPA releases its Climate Change Policy and Climate Change Action Plan 2023-26 – Planning for the Net-Zero Future (February 2023)

Mitigation Actions under the newly released NSW EPA Climate Change Policy and Climate Change Action Plan 2023-26 (February 2023) 

Adaptation Actions under the newly released NSW EPA Climate Change Policy and Climate Change Action Plan 2023-26 (February 2023) 

NSW EPA's Climate Change Policy and Action Plan 2023-26: An insurance sector perspective (February 2023) 

Directors' duties and the ISSB Standards: What are the risks in climate and sustainability disclosure? (February 2023)

Thornton-Dibb, M Local Government and the Protection of the Environment: An Analysis of the Functional Areas of 'Municipal Planning' and 'Environment' (2013) submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Masters of Law.

Provided various bespoke environmental legal training workshops to corporate clients.

  • IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL), 2015 – current
  • Environment and Planning Law Association NSW, 2019 – current
  • English
  • Afrikaans

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