Practice Areas

MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT

Advised on a commercial and residential development in the Melbourne CBD which involved over 500 off the plan sales of apartments, serviced apartments and commercial offices.

MAJOR SHOPPING CENTER ACQUISITION AND REDEVELOPMENT

Advised on the $700 million redevelopment of Australia's largest shopping centre which involved the relocation of major tenants, the expansion of the existing shopping centre as well and the design and construction of a new hotel and office building on site. Advised and transacted on a $35 million purchase and sale of a major shopping centre complex.

HOTEL SITE ACQUISITION AND DEVELOPMENT

Extensive experience in negotiating hotel management agreements with various tier one and two hotel and serviced apartment operators including the Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Inter Continental Hotels Group, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Quest Apartments.

We have acted for various developers on all aspects of their hotel development projects including the design and construction of a high-end hotel in Melbourne worth over $50 million.

MAJOR COMMERCIAL BUILDING ACQUISITION

Advised on and transacted on a $70 million purchase of a major commercial building on St Kilda Road with ongoing leasing and management of offices in the building.

MINERALS AND RESOURCES PROJECTS

Advised a large international mining company (listed on the HXE) with an annual turnover of $5.8+ billion on various aspects of its operations all over Australia.

OFF-MARKET ASX MERGER

Advised in relation to the merger of two ASX listed oil and gas companies via a recommended off-market takeover bid valued at $31.5 million.

REGULATED MARKET DIVESTMENT AND RE-COMPLIANCE

Advised on the spin out of downstream assets from an ASX listed parent company in a transaction to redomicile group assets to a European market whilst maintaining the parent company’s ASX listing.

AGED CARE FACILITY

Advised on the development of a multimillion dollar aged care centre. Acted for numerous aged care facility operators in various disputes.

STUDENT ACCOMMODATION DEVELOPMENT

Advised on the design and construction of a student accommodation building in Melbourne worth approximately $85 million.

MAJOR OFFICE FITOUT

Advised various clients (including RACV and Skilled Group) on the fitout of their office headquarters in Victoria.

RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS

Acted for a large Chinese state owned enterprise on its $350 million wind farm development in Victoria.

CROSS-BORDER ACQUISITION AND LISTING OF MULTI-TENEMENT PRODUCTION AND EXPLORATION ASSETS

Advised a locally controlled entity on its acquisition of a $15 million p/a base metal project and multi-tenement Zn/Cu/Au exploration assets in Southern Chile from EuroNext listed operator. Transaction included a contemporaneous debt/equity financing component with Macquarie Bank (taking place across 6 international jurisdictions), and subsequent capital raising and LSE listing.

SUITE OF TEMPLATE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS

Prepared a suite of template services, construction, maintenance and other procurement contracts for various clients including Mega Homes, LDS Property and Plus Architects.

SIGNIFICANT TENEMENT ACQUISITION

Advised ASX listed gold producer on the acquisition of the Mt Holland Project, now the largest lithium development in Australia, including obtaining approval for ‘Chapter 10’ purposes due to involvement from a related party financier.

PERIODIC CAPITAL RAISE

Advised SME listed exploration and technology entities on a range of underwritten and renounceable/non-renounceable rights issues and SPPs undertaken throughout 2015 – 2017 to meet capital expenditure requirements.

GOVERNMENT INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

Advised the Commonwealth on the $50 billion roll out of Australia’s nbn network (the largest infrastructure project in Australia’s history).

WINERY ACQUISITION

Advised and transacted on various acquisitions of wineries in Red Hill and Northern Victorian regions.

APPEARANCES BEFORE VCAT AND PLANNING PANELS VICTORIA (PPV)

Advocated for clients at VCAT, PPV, Supreme Court and Magistrates’ Court on various planning issues including:.

contaminated land, waste management and industrial development;

contamination risk in leases, share purchase agreements and infrastructure project deeds;

subdivision and development contributions;

aboriginal cultural heritage;

water law;

biodiversity law and offsets;

compliance and enforcement; and

judicial review and Supreme Court appeals from VCAT.

JUDICIAL REVIEW OF A CLEAN UP NOTICE

Acted for Bayside City Council in a judicial review of a clean up notice issued by the EPA in respect of lead contamination at Merindah Park.

ADVICE ON SCOPING REQUIREMENTS FOR REMEDIATION

Acted for Development Victoria and provided advice on scoping requirements for remediation of the former Fitzroy Gasworks.

REMEDIATION AGREEMENTS AND GROWTH AREA PLANNING

Acted for various clients in the drafting of remediation agreements to regulate the staged development of complex sites subject to environmental audit requirements.

Appearing for planning authorities in relation to several precinct structure plans.

ACQUISITION AND REDEVELOPMENT OF MAJOR CBD LANDMARK

Key advisors on the acquisition and redevelopment of a $600 million project of 2 hotels and a shopping centre located in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD. This landmark project represented the first major redevelopment on Bourke Street Mall in the last decade.

Advised a number of high-profile developers on all aspects of their development of various hotels around Melbourne including the Hotel Management Agreement, Early Contractor Involvement Agreement, Construction Contract, Finance Tripartite Agreement and suite of Services Contracts. This includes hotels operated by International Hotel Group, Radisson Hotels, Wyndham Hotels and Hilton Hotels & Resorts.

MULTI USE DEVELOPMENTS AND NEGOTIATIONS WITH SUBURBAN RAIL LOOP AUTHORITY

Acted for a developer on all aspects of a major $100 million mixed use development (including from a structuring, planning, property and construction perspective) which included 220 apartments and various retail stores. This involved complex negotiations with the Suburban Rail Loop Authority as the development site encroached on the government’s proposed corridor for the new Suburban Rail Loop.

VOCO DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING DISPUTE

Acted for a developer on all aspects of a major $100 million mixed use development which included a hotel, commercial offices and residential apartments. This included a successful opposition to an objector appeal at VCAT under section 82 of the Planning and Environment Act 1987, the first time such legislation has been tested in Victoria.

ACQUISITION AND REDEVELOPMENT OF MAJOR CBD LANDMARK

Key advisors on the acquisition and redevelopment of a $600 million project of 2 hotels and a shopping centre located in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD. This landmark project represented the first major redevelopment on Bourke Street Mall in the last decade.Advised a number of high-profile developers on all aspects of their development of various hotels around Melbourne including the Hotel Management Agreement, Early Contractor Involvement Agreement, Construction Contract, Finance Tripartite Agreement and suite of Services Contracts. This includes hotels operated by International Hotel Group, Radisson Hotels, Wyndham Hotels and Hilton Hotels & Resorts.

DIVESTMENT OF ASSETS FOR ASX LISTED ENTITY

Advised in sale of a subsidiary of an ASX listed company valued at $15 million, including drafting Notice of Meeting disclosure booklet for shareholders, ASX notifications and announcements in compliance with ASX listing rules.

MIXED USE TOWER PERMIT

Represented a developer client before the Fisherman’s Bend Standing Advisory Committee in relation to its mixed use tower within the Montague Street Precinct in respect of a $100 million development.

SUBURBAN RAIL LOOP EAST NEGOTIATIONS

Negotiated a compensation claim on behalf of the affected developer client for foundational design changes required to an apartment development as a result of the SRL East Design and Development Overlay.

SET UP OF MANAGED INVESTMENT SCHEMES

Advised in the set-up of managed investment schemes (some valued at over $50 million), including the drafting of Information Memorandums and obtaining relevant ASIC approvals in compliance with the Corporations Act and ASIC regulations.

400 MILLION LOAN EARLY LIGHT

Acted as the primary advisor to the client in relation to the refinance of the $400m Stock Exchange Building in Sydney. This included reviewing and advising on financing and security documents, managing the settlement process and attending to leasing and other related issues arising from the transaction.

CLASS ACTION AGAINST A DEVELOPER

Successfully acted in a class action for numerous purchasers in a litigation matter against a property developer. This matter involved formulating strategic advice on diverse legal issues, ultimately resulting in a positive outcome for our clients.

MINING DISPUTES

Acted for a large gold mine operator in Ballarat, Victoria in relation to various disputes with contractors and suppliers.

SECURITY OF PAYMENT CLAIMS

Acted for both developers and builders as claimants and respondents in numerous adjudication applications under the Security of Payments legislation, most notably, in relation to a $12 million payment claim.

GENERAL BUILDING DISPUTES

Acted for multiple developers in relation to partially complete projects including commencing litigation against the relevant builder or insurer and providing commercial and strategic advice to complete the project, most notably, in relation to a $20 million claim in the Supreme Court.

REPOSSESSION ORDERS IN THE SUPREME COURT

Successfully acted for numerous developers to remove squatters from development sites, including making an application for a repossession order in the Supreme Court.

BLACKMAIL CLAIM UNDER S 87 OF THE CRIMES ACT 1958

Acted for a large developer who was a plaintiff in a matter involving black mail, an indictable offence under section 87 Crimes Act 1958 in Victoria. This also involved related misleading and deceptive conduct claims.

CONCURRENT VISA APPLICATIONS

Successfully facilitated large corporate clients with 25 onshore visa applications concurrently.

VISA RESTRUCTURE

Restructuring a visa pathway due to a complex matter that involved health issues, to achieve the best residence outcome.

PERMANENT RESIDENCY

Obtaining permanent residency within 8 months for an Applicant experiencing domestic violence.