Dee Divina is a Senior Associate at Ryan Carlisle Thomas, where she brings a unique combination of legal expertise and healthcare experience to her practice in workers’ compensation, TAC and dependency claims. Her distinctive background enables her to understand clients’ injuries and challenges from both medical and legal perspectives.
Before pursuing law, Dee worked for eight years as a Registered Psychiatric Nurse, an experience that profoundly shaped her approach to client care and her understanding of the complex intersection between health, wellbeing and legal rights. She holds a Bachelor of Nursing and a Master of Nursing in Mental Health, before completing her Juris Doctor.
Dee previously worked at Ryan Carlisle Thomas earlier in her career, practising in personal injury law including WorkCover, TAC and public liability matters. She subsequently gained valuable experience as a defendant solicitor, handling WorkCover claims and developing comprehensive insight into how insurers and defendants approach cases. This experience on both sides of litigation has strengthened her ability to advocate effectively for injured clients.
Dee returned to Ryan Carlisle Thomas, drawn back by her passion for social justice and the firm’s commitment to representing individuals during their most challenging times. Her career trajectory reflects a consistent dedication to helping vulnerable people navigate complex systems, whether in healthcare or legal settings.
Having passed the VicBar exam, Dee will be heading to the Victorian Bar to commence the Readers’ Course, continuing her professional development in advocacy and client representation.
Dee is an active member of the Asian Australian Legal Association and the Filipino Australian Lawyers Association, where she previously served as Communications Officer. These professional connections reflect her commitment to diversity and inclusion within the legal profession.
Dee is multilingual, speaking Filipino/Tagalog, Ilocano and Waray in addition to English, which enables her to connect with and support clients from Filipino and broader Asian communities in their preferred language.
