Andy Bell is a Partner at Lane Neave, specialising in employment law and relationship property in Wellington. In practice since his admission to the Bar in 2002, Andy is a recommended lawyer in both the Legal 500 Asia Pacific and the Doyles Guide, and is named joint head of Lane Neave’s national employment practice, ranked Tier 2 in New Zealand for Labour and Employment.
Employment law
Andy acts for employers and employees across the full span of workplace law: personal grievances, disciplinary processes, restructuring and redundancy, workplace investigations, and employment agreements. He appears regularly in the Employment Relations Authority, the Employment Court and the ordinary courts, and is one of the most prolific practitioners in Wellington engaged in MBIE employment mediation.
Having founded and run his own firm before merging it with Lane Neave, Andy understands first-hand the pressures on business owners and people leaders. His advice is commercial and direct: a realistic read on the position early, a clear strategy, and a focus on resolving matters rather than escalating them.
Relationship property
Andy advises clients protecting assets going into a relationship and dividing property coming out of one: contracting out agreements (prenups), relationship property division after separation, and disputes where businesses, trusts or estates complicate the picture. He leads Lane Neave’s relationship property offering in Wellington and Auckland, working with senior specialists in both cities. Most matters resolve by negotiation or mediation; where they don’t, Andy is an experienced Family Court and High Court litigator.
Approach
Andy holds a BA in psychology alongside his law degree, and it shapes how he practises. His focus is the psychology and drivers of the people across the table: keeping parties talking, disagreeing without being disagreeable, and converting leverage into settlement. Clients deal with Andy directly, and he picks up the phone.
Career
Before joining Lane Neave, Andy was principal of Bell & Co, the Wellington employment and dispute resolution boutique he founded in 2014, which merged with Lane Neave in January 2022. He was previously a partner at Fitzherbert Rowe in Palmerston North and a specialist employment lawyer at Quigg Partners in Wellington.
Recognition
- Legal 500 Asia Pacific: Recommended Lawyer (2026)
- Doyles Guide: Recommended, Employment Law
- Joint head of Lane Neave’s employment practice, ranked Tier 2, Labour & Employment, New Zealand (Legal 500, 2026)
- LLB, BA (Psychology), Victoria University of Wellington
