LEGAL SERVICES FEATURE

Hire good lawyers in interesting places and see what happens

- Paul Evans

2 businessnews.com.au | February 12, 2018 February 12, 2018 | businessnews.com.au 3 FEATURE Law partners make their moves

There has been a flurry of high-profile moves by senior lawyers in Perth as the sector readies for a pick-up from several quiet years. LEGAL MOVES Quinn Emanuel does not CURRENT FIRM NAME PREVIOUS FIRM KEY FACTS aspire to be a big law firm in Quinn Emanuel Michael Lundberg King & Wood Mallesons Perth, but the calibre of its part- WA’S TOP 20 LAW FIRMS: ners means it is likely to take Jackson McDonald Brendan Fyfe Holman Fenwick Willan (HK) some of the cream from its larger Ian Gordon King & Wood Mallesons competitors. 240 Mr Lundberg said Quinn Ema- Norton Rose Fulbright Penelope Ford Minter Ellison PARTNERS nuel was undeniably the leading LSV Borrello Lawyers Paul Gribble Clayton Utz 16% disputes firm in the world, and its specialist focus meant he LSV Borrello Lawyers Rebecca Strom Corrs Chambers Westgarth FROM 2012 PEAK would not be constrained by the Clyde & Co Barry Cameron Clyde & Co (Aberdeen) client conflicts that invariably Murfett Legal Mark Fatharly Kott Gunning 1,241 arose at large commercial law firms. SRB Legal Kim Hodge Hodge & Smith LAWYERS “I can work for the clients that 15% have wanted to use me,” he said. Kings Park Legal Formed from merger of Wojtowicz Kelly and Hayes Poli Legal FROM 2012 PEAK Mr Evans said law firms used to have very robust discussions The latest example of this as Freehills (22), Lawyers has not achieved a great to deal with client conflicts, trend is US-based Quinn Ema- King & Wood Mallesons (13) and deal from its growth-by-acquisi- but his observation now was nuel Urquhart & Sullivan, which Clayton Utz (17) have steadily tion strategy. that corporate clients took has lured its second high-profile declined during the past 15 years. It was aiming to become one of precedence. Perth recruit in less than a year. (The decline by market leader the larger firms in Perth through “Unless your firm is con- King & Wood Mallesons partner HSF was exaggerated by the fact its acquisition of locally owned sciously litigation-led, the Michael Lundberg, who is consid- its Perth practice was unsustain- specialist Jarman litigators tend to come second.” ered one of the state’s top litigators, ably large after it was formed McKenna, which had a dozen He observed that the mergers will be joining former state solici- from a merger of Perth’s two partners at its peak in 2015. and alliances between Austral- tor and biggest firms, Parker & Parker By the time of the merger ian firms and international firms Mark Beyer partner Paul Evans at the litigation and Freehill, Hollingdale & Page, early last year, only five partners in recent years meant navigating [email protected] @AMarkBeyer specialist next month. in 1997.) moved across to join Sparke Hel- client conflicts was even more Mr Lundberg’s move is one of Other leading firms such as more’s two incumbents. complex. 5-PAGE FEATURE several lateral hires by law firms Ashurst, Allens, and Norton Rose Since then, Roger Sands has Mr Lundberg said he expected seeking to bolster their position. Fulbright expanded through the retired from the partnership more work from existing clients. F there is one figure that Jackson McDonald has decade-long mining construc- but has stayed on with the firm “I’ve not been able to act for reveals the state of the legal recruited Brendan Fyfe, a tion boom, but have slimmed as a consultant, while Jonathan them on incredibly important I profession in Perth in recent Kalgoorlie-raised banking and down in recent years. Wyatt and members of his team litigation,” he said. years, it’s the 16 per cent fall in mining specialist who has spent Locally owned practices Jack- have joined Clyde & Co. “And there is a whole world of the number of partners at the the past decade working in Asia. son McDonald and Lavan have With five partners and 33 legal other people I’ve had to knock state’s top 20 law firms from the International firms Hogan fluctuated in size over the past professionals, it is currently back over the years.” peak in 2012. Lovells, Norton Rose Fulbright 15 years but remain two of the ranked number 20 in the BNiQ Mr Lundberg, who was for- Data compiled by Business and Clyde & Co have bolstered largest law firms in Perth. Search Engine listing of WA law merly partner in charge of News and published online in their Perth ranks (see table). In fact, when measured by firms (see page 26 for full list). Mallesons’ Perth office and head the BNiQ Search Engine shows Local boutique firms such as number of partners, Jackson of its dispute resolution team, the top 20 firms currently have LSV Borrello Lawyers and Mur- McDonald (27) and Lavan (26) are International presence will move to Quinn Emanuel 240 partners – down from 287 six fett Legal have also recruited the biggest. The international law firms with three members of his team. years ago. new partners. On the upside, MinterEllison that moved into the Perth Unlike many other lawyers, There has been a similar fall In addition, there have been a has achieved solid expansion in market during the past six to who are forced to take several in the total number of legal pro- couple of mergers among local recent years, after the national seven years have come in many months ‘gardening’ leave when fessionals at these firms over the firms seeking to strengthen firm had to rebuild its Perth shapes and sizes. they move between firms, Mr same period. their market position, as dis- practice almost from scratch in Some firms, such as Allen Lundberg is going straight from To a considerable extent, these cussed further below. 2011. & Overy, Clifford Chance and Mallesons to his new job early numbers reflect the slowdown in HWL Ebsworth Lawyers has Ashurst came in with a big bang next month. the state’s economy, and particu- Long-term backdrop also grown rapidly, especially at and continue to have a substan- “I’ve got a lot of matters I’m larly the drop-off in big-ticket The longer-term backdrop to partner level, after the national tial presence. currently working on; clients project and construction work. these developments is a notable firm acquired Perth-based Others like Quinn Emanuel, need continuity,” he said. They also reflect the changing lack of growth across the profes- Downings Legal in 2013. Jones Day, Hogan Lovells, and Mr Lundberg said the move shape of the industry, as interna- sion in Perth, as shown by the Other national firms to have Pinsent Masons have been more from Mallesons was very tional and interstate firms have table on page 25. enjoyed some growth include cautious, recruiting experienced amicable. snared a greater share of the Partner numbers at major law Mills Oakley and Gilbert + Tobin. partners and aiming to build market. firms in Western Australia such In contrast, Sparke Helmore slowly. Continued on page 4 2 businessnews.com.au | February 12, 2018 February 12, 2018 | businessnews.com.au 3 FEATURE LEGAL SERVICES Law partners make their moves

WA IN-HOUSE LEGAL TEAMS

Woodside 28

Wesfarmers 24

Inpex 20

Rio Tinto 20

Chevron 16

Shell 16

BHP Billiton 12

Fortescue Metals Group 12

Landgate 12

South32 11

St John of God Health Care 10

Water Corporation 10

University of WA 8

University of Notre Dame 8

RAC 8 SKILLS: Brendan Fyfe (right) will work closely with Will Moncrieff at Jackson McDonald. Photos: Attila Csaszar Source: Law Almanac

From page 3 “We think clients are look- “We have international work I’ve done a lot of international ing for lawyers who can fulfil a but our service offering is very “I don’t see myself as a number of roles; that suits our much focused on being experts competitor. practice, which is fairly broad.” in WAand Australian mining “I expect that I’ll continue to work, but the thing that’s closest Mr Moncrieff said the firm and corporate markets,” Mr Mon- work closely with them and we would also be looking to do more crieff said. will refer work.” to my heart is mining in Western work on project development Mr Evans said Quinn Emanuel and project finance. Independent view would have about 10 experi- Australia -Brendan Fyfe “We’ve probably had a focus up As the partner-in-charge of enced staff after Mr Lundberg’s to now on the corporate, transac- Clayton Utz’s Perth office, Nick team moved across. As well as litigation through His experience includes sev- tional side of things, but we see Cooper has watched with inter- It deliberately had a low-lever- the courts, he has handled inter- eral years working underground, opportunities now on the project est as new firms have entered age model, meaning partners did national arbitrations. including at the Plutonic mine. side of mining,” he said. the market. not have large teams of junior For instance, Mr Lundberg has Mr Fyfe spent 10 years in Asia “That requires people with “Certainly there is increased lawyers. run London-based arbitrations with Jones Day and Holman specialist skills, that someone competition,” Mr Cooper said. He added the firm did not for disputes involving projects Fenwick Willan, before deciding like Brendan provides.” “It will be interesting to see have a set strategy on future in Libya and PNG. to move back to Perth with his Mr Fyfe’s specialist knowledge how the international strategies growth, other than to “hire good “That adds to the range of young family. is evidenced by the fact he is pos- of various firms plays out over lawyers in interesting places things we get to work on,” he said. “I’ve done a lot of international sibly the only law firm partner to the next few years.” and see what happens”. Mr Evans said the long-run- work, but the thing that’s closest have been accepted as a member He said Clayton Utz, recently Mr Lundberg’s clients have ning Bell Group litigation would to my heart is mining in Western of AusIMM, the mining institute named by Chambers Asia-Pa- included property investor not be a focus for his office. Australia,” he said. that sets technical standards for cific as the Australian law firm Perron Group, construction “Being with JacMac lets me the industry. of the year, continued to enjoy company BGC, and mining Full service really focus on that Mr Moncrieff said Jackson benefits from its independent companies BHP Billiton and Jackson McDonald has bol- “We now have a full service McDonald’s international cli- status. South32. stered its capacity to service the offering for the mining sector.” ents included Indonesia’s PT “Maintaining our independ- His main focus at Quinn mining sector after recruiting Jackson McDonald partner Will Amman Mineral Nusa Tengarra, ence has been positive,” he said. Emanuel would be energy and Brendan Fyfe. Moncrieff said the firm would be which acquired a big stake in “We still get interna- resources, but he would cover Its newest partner grew up in able to offer a broader service. Macmahon Holdings last year, tional work through our other areas. Kalgoorlie, with family members “When we first met Brendan, and Canada’s First Cobalt Corp, relationships. “Having a broad skill base working in mining and banking – we were intrigued by the fact he which merged with Cobalt One. “We’ve received 60 new mat- means there are incredible the two areas in which he practices. was both a mining lawyer and It is also acting for Perth-based ters from overseas since 1 July, opportunities irrespective of “There has always been that a banking and finance lawyer, but Africa-focused manganese with $37 million of revenue.” the market trends,” Mr Lund- tangible link, particularly to gold which is a fairly unique offering,” miner Jupiter Mines, which is Mr Cooper said that, while berg said. mining,” Mr Fyfe said. Mr Moncrieff told Business News. preparing for a $200 million IPO. Clayton Utz did not claim to 4 businessnews.com.au | February 12, 2018 February 12, 2018 | businessnews.com.au 5 LEGAL SERVICES FEATURE

SEARCHENGINE ...your key to WA business Perth’s largest law firms

NAME PARTNERS 2018 2013 2008 2003 Herbert Smith Freehills 22 25 34 37 Jackson McDonald 27 30 26 27 King & Wood Mallesons 13 16 17 20 Clayton Utz 17 20 22 23 Lavan 26 21 19 23 Corrs Chambers Westgarth 14 16 10 11 MinterEllison* 16 6 23 20 Ashurst 15 24 20 20 Allens 8 13 11 8 DLA Piper 11 12 11 n/a Norton Rose Fulbright 12 19 15 13 HHG Legal 2 2 2 n/a HWL Ebsworth 14 6 6 6 Allen & Overy 7 4 n/a n/a

* MinterEllison’s Perth practice split in 2011. Most partners joined what is now . Four partners established a new office aligned to MinterEllison nationally. REPUTATION: Nick Cooper says Clayton Utz continues to benefit from its independence. Law firms ranked by total number of legal professionals; for further details, see page 26

have exclusive relationships, its One of the notable trends over “We now have the latest soft- independence and active inter- the past decade has been the ware that will enable us to We now have the latest national engagement means it build-up of in-house legal teams. efficiently and more cost effec- now works more closely than Major companies such as tively manage discovery. before with a significant number Woodside Petroleum, Wes- “It picks up on patterns and software that will enable us to of international firms. farmers, Inpex and Rio Tinto trends and learns; it becomes far “We’ve always had strong rela- each have 20 or more in-house more efficient in its ability to efficiently and more cost effectively tionships with overseas firms,” lawyers, according to the Law weed out irrelevant documents. he said. Almanac (see table, page 24). “There is always a human ele- manage discovery - Nick Cooper “Since the internationals Other big companies such as ment, but we are able to reduce entered this market, these Chevron, Shell, BHP and Fortes- the man-hours needed for physi- experience,” managing principal adding employment, human relationships have only cue Metals Group each have a cal document reviews.” Mark Borrello said. resources, and industrial rela- strengthened. dozen or more. “For me it’s proof that a bou- tions expertise. “We can refer clients to inter- Mr Cooper said this means Local movers tique firm like ours can attract The merger sees partner Kim national firms and they refer a lot of day-to-day commercial Local firms to have made nota- senior top-end talent because of Hodge and his team move over work to us. work was done in-house. ble moves this year include LSV our value proposition. to SRB. “They come to us because we’re “It means we have to be able Borrello Lawyers, SRB Legal and “There is a gulf between how A new name in the Perth not a direct competitor in their to distinguish ourselves and the newly established Kings Park quickly we can modify our market is Kings Park Legal, own markets.” add value to their business,” he Legal. approach to deliver the best which was established on Jan- Mr Cooper said his colleagues said. LSV Borrello Lawyers has results, our competition can’t uary 1 following the merger of across the firm saw many signs Mr Cooper said this often appointed Paul Gribble and even hope to keep up.” Wojtowicz Kelly Legal and Hayes of increased activity. meant specialised work, such as Rebecca Strom as principals. On the merger front, insur- Poli Legal. “There is a degree of optimism big M&A deals or major litigation. Ms Strom joined from Corrs ance defence specialist SRB Curiously, this came six that’s come back into the market “There will always be occa- Chambers Westgarth, where she Legal has merged with boutique months after its near namesake, in our corporate area,” he said. sions when they need to brief was a partner for more than five employment law firm Hodge & Kings Park Corporate Lawyers, “Our banking and finance external law firms,” he said. years and worked in the prop- Smith. ceased to exist. practice group is seeing increas- Another significant develop- erty and infrastructure team for SRB managing partner Graeme The break-up of that firm ing activity and that’s off the ment was the increased use of more than 15 years. Richards said the merged prac- resulted in the establishment of back of increased commodity software, particularly in the dis- Mr Gribble was previously at tice would offer a broader scope two new law firms, House Legal prices. covery process for litigation. Clayton Utz, where he practised of complementary services by and Armeli Molony Lawyers. “What that translates to is a “It’s a game changer because for almost 30 years, mostly as a high level of project finance.” modern litigation can be partner. SEARCH Herbert Smith Freehills This included renewable extremely expensive and time “We’re really excited to have energy, mining and property consuming, and a big part of that Rebecca and Paul join our team, There are 222 results from our index of 93,520 articles, deals. is discovery,” Mr Cooper said. they bring with them a wealth of 9,238 companies and 31,613 people 4 businessnews.com.au | February 12, 2018 February 12, 2018 | businessnews.com.au 5 FEATURE PORTS & TRANSPORT

SEARCHENGINE LAW FIRMS AND PATENT ATTORNEYS ...your key to WA business GET THE FULL LIST ONLINE businessnews.com.au/List/law_firms

Number No. of of Other Total Change Senior Qualified Number from Year Offices Associ- No.Of Legal of Legal Total previous est. in a) WA No. of ates/As- Consult- Profes- Profes- staff in Rank year Company name Senior executive and title WA b) Interstate Partners sociates ants sionals sionals WA Types of Law Practiced Banking and finance, technology, media and telecommunications, mergers and Herbert Smith Mr Tony Joyner 1868 a) 1 22 97 4 21 213 acquisitions, competition law, litigation and dispute resolution, corporate crime and 1 — Freehills Managing Partner, Perth b) 3 144 investigations, projects and infrastructure, real estate, environment and planning, regulatory and government affairs... Corporate and commercial law including corporate advisory, M&A, finance, mining Jackson Mr Malcolm Shelton-Agar 1922 a) 1 27 23 6 66 201 and resources, oil and gas, energy and energy regulation, insolvency and recon- 2 — McDonald Chief Executive Officer b) 0 122 struction, alternative dispute resolution and commercial litigation, competition, construction, infrastructure access, property, planning...

King & Wood Mr John Naughton a) 1 3 — Partner in Charge, Perth 1832 13 23 2 50 88 144 All areas of corporate and commercial law. Mallesons Office b) 4 Banking & finance, corporate/M&A, capital markets, competition, construction and major pro- Mr Nick Cooper a) 1 jects, corporate finance, cyber security, energy & resources, environment & planning, insolven- 4 — Clayton Utz Partner in Charge - Perth 1877 b) 5 17 25 44 86 136 cy & restructuring, intellectual property and information technology, litigation and dispute resolution, native title, real estate, taxation, workplace relations, employment & safety. Agribusiness, Asia and international, banking and finance, competition and regula- Mr Dean Hely a) 1 tion, construction and infrastructure, corporate services, cyber and data protection, 5  Lavan Managing Partner 1898 b) 0 26 22 24 72 151 education, employment and safety, family law, intellectual property and technology, liquor licensing hospitality and events... Banking and finance, corporate advisory, property and technology, competition and Corrs Chambers Mr Nicholas Ellery 1991 a) 1 14 23 8 24 97 trade practices, taxation, litigation, workplace relations, energy, resources and pro- 6  Westgarth Partner-in-Charge b) 3 69 jects, insolvency, property and infrastructure, construction, planning, environment and local government, information and technology... Mr Adam Handley 7  MinterEllison Partner; Leader, China 2011 a) 1 16 28 1 23 68 116 All areas of corporate and commercial law. Markets b) 7

Mr Richard Guit 8  Ashurst Head of Perth Office; 1988 a) 1 15 16 3 29 63 105 Energy and resources, corporate advisory, M&A, commercial litigation, property, Partner, Infrastructure b) 5 construction, employment, safety and discrimination.

Mr Gerard Woods Corporate and commercial advisory, mergers and acquisitions, energy and resources, 9  Allens Partner, Perth Practice 1997 a) 1 8 49 5 62 97 property and construction, banking and financial services, insolvency, litigation, Director b) 3 native title, workplace relations.

Corporate and commercial, insurance and risk management, workplace relations, 10  DLA Piper Ms Leanne Nickels 1985 a) 1 11 17 2 28 57 98 employment and safety, mining, energy and resources, construction, infrastructure, Perth Managing Partner b) 4 property, projects and finance, litigation and dispute resolution, marine. Acquisition finance, alternative dispute resolution, antitrust, competition and Norton Rose Mr Chris McLeod 1975 a) 1 12 37 2 84 regulatory, asset-based lending, asset finance, asset management, aviation, banking 11  Fulbright Partner & Head of Office b) 4 51 and finance, business ethics and anti-corruption, capital markets, construction and engineering, corporate, debt capital markets, employee benefits... Tax law, family and de facto law, banking and finance, construction, commercial Mr Simon Creek a) 4 litigation, wills and estate planning, probate, commercial & corporate law, property 12 — HHG Legal Managing Director, Media- 1919 b) 0 2 9 3 33 48 60 law, workplace relations and employment law, private wealth services, non-legal aid tor, Special Counsel criminal law, mediation, pro bono, local government. Banking and financial services, building and construction, capital markets (equity Mr Mitch Artus a) 1 and debt), commercial (commercial contracting, mergers and acquisitions), energy 13  HWL Ebsworth Partner, National Chairman 1897 b) 9 14 13 1 16 44 73 and resources, government, insolvency and securities enforcement, insurance (professional indemnity, public liability, workers’ compensation, ... Mr Geoff Simpson Corporate M&A, capital markets, commercial, competition, private equity, energy 14  Allen & Overy Managing Partner, Perth; 2010 a) 1 7 32 1 1 41 50 and resources, projects, infrastructure and construction, litigation and international Global Head of Mining b) 1 arbitration.

Mr Ken Jagger a) 1 Flexible legal resourcing including the provision of secondment services, remote 15  LOD Chief Operating Officer 2008 b) 3 5 36 41 48 lawyers and managed and virtual legal teams.

16 RANKED BY TOTAL NUMBER OF LEGAL PROFESSIONALS IN WA 114

All information compiled using surveys, publicly available data and contact with industry sources. Other companies may be eligible for inclusion. If you believe your company is eligible, please email [email protected]. WND: Would Not Disclose, NFP: Not For Publication, N/A: Not Applicable or Not Available. The above list (and more than 80 other lists) inclusive of address, phone and email information are available online to all business subscribers at www.businessnews.com.au. If you are not a fully paid up subscriber of Business News and want access to over 6,700 businesses and 24,000 executives, please contact us on 9288 2100 or email [email protected].

6 businessnews.com.au | February 12, 2018 LEGAL SERVICES

SEARCH law There are 6,733 results from our index of 93,520 articles, 9,238 companies and 31,613 people Board Moves January 10-18, 2018 Right fit for law firm 18 Jan 2018 by Business News 19 Oct 2017 by Katie McDonald Role of non-executive chair. Tungsten Mining has appointed Tan Sri Dato Tien Seng Law as non- can often take centre stage for incoming tenants, but for international law firm Allen & Overy ... executive ... director and deputy chair. Mr Law is a highly experienced investor with extensive for a law firm.” The interior design, Mr Simpson said, had also been completed to A&O’s high ... business interests and ... Maclachlan Greg Cunnold Damian Delaney Craig Barnes David Princep Malcolm Randall Tien Seng Law ... Law firm moves into forensics 03 Jul 2017 by Mark Beyer Primary, Huntley chase Quintis role legal practices, law firm Clayton Utz is pushing back, setting up its own forensics and 23 Jan 2018 by Mark Beyer technology ... groups such as KordaMentha, McGrathNicol and PPB. Mr Fontanot said Australian law firm jointly established by Quintis founder Frank Wilson. The cooperative’s board also law firms had been slow to ... pursue this opportunity. “Our biggest competitors in South Africa includes Mr ... were law firms,” he said. “When I got ...

New players chasing finance deals as opportunities align Tanzanian law changes a concern for Cradle, Orecorp 15 Jan 2018 by Mark Beyer 03 Jul 2017 by Fraser Beattie Subscribers can analyse online in the BNiQ Search Engine. Gilbert + Tobin was top among the laws. Perth-based Cradle, which owns the Panda Hill niobium project in Tanzania, said it law firms, helped ... Quadrant Energy on a planned stock market float. Legal advisers The top terminated the ... proposed scheme of arrangement with Tremont as a result of newly proposed law firm was Allen & Overy, ... changes in Tanzanian law, which ... implications of the proposed changes of law and termination of the scheme implementation agreement on the ... McCullagh to lead common MRA-LandCorp boards 03 Jan 2018 by Katie McDonald Law firms grapple with market shift Planning, property law, land development, architecture and design excellence. Members will 13 Feb 2017 by Mark Beyer serve on both the ... for the venerable Perth law firm. “We had lots of suitors, and some damn fine offers,” the current ... seems to be doing very nicely. It is the second largest law firm in Perth with 27 partners and 122 ... we see off the global and national law firms,” he said. Global firms Mr Poulsen to retire from law Sandover argues Jackson ... 20 Oct 2017 by Mark Beyer Australian managing partner at Squire Patton Boggs since 2011, when the US law firm entered the local market. ... businessnews.com.au