MinterEllisonRuddWatts > Auckland, New Zealand > Firm Profile

‘Steve Gallaugher is our go to banking and finance partner in Auckland legal community. He’s very diligent, always answers his phone or returns calls, and seems to have his hand on the pulse on what’s happening in the NZ market.’

‘The MERW team stands out as the best in the market; they are pragmatic and commercial, as well as deeply knowledgeable. They are highly professional but approachable, and of all law firms I have engaged in my 20+ years in executive banking, I am continually drawn back to MERW for their genuine partnership approach.’

‘Kate Lane is a phenomenal banking lawyer, with her knowledge and practical application of CCCFA a particular strength – she is universally considered the preeminent expert in this field within the banking sector.’

‘The MERW banking and finance team is top-notch. All the partners have a core understanding of general banking and finance, but they each have a speciality which means that, as a team, they can offer detailed legal knowledge and a real understanding of market practice in their specialist fields.’

‘Kate Lane is very experienced, covered most of the areas of banking and finance law over her career. Very pragmatic and good at the complex work.’

‘Large and responsive team, with engaging and knowledgeable team members.’

‘Steve Gallagher is friendly, knowledgeable and a trusted pair of hands.’

‘Chris O’Brien is a highly experienced practitioner who has strength across a broad range of practice areas.’

‘Dr Ross Paterson is the most experienced practitioner in town. Really knows how to get to the issue and find a commercial solution.’

‘High-quality lawyers, pragmatic.’

‘Both Ross Patterson and Jennifer Hambleton are excellent to deal with. High-quality legal advice, easy to understand, commercially focused.’

‘As a team, they were extremely responsive and committed, technically excellent and diligent at managing their fees. But their unique strengths in my view included creativity, a commercial lens on everything and excellent contributions to strategic planning in projects.’

‘They are exceptionally well versed on commercial realities and extremely competent at grasping complex accounting and financial concepts that impact on deal-making and returns to shareholders.’

‘Neil Millar is an exceptional deal maker who adds immense value by understanding commercial drivers, this is rare in lawyers who regularly focus on legal mechanics to achieve the vision of a business.’

‘Tayla Johnston thinks and breathes like her boss so you never feel that you have to repeat yourself if not always on the same calls. Their is immense depth to the team with Jasmin Matthews able to bridge any absences. We never lose continuity.’

‘We have predominantly been working with Neil Millar & Tayla Johnston in the M&A space, along with the wider team on a support basis. MERW has a key strength in market where it has a very pragmatic and commercial approach to the M&A.’

‘They are able to cut through complex issues, breaking them down into manageable components with a process that is easy to follow. They are strongly commercial in their approach to negotiation.’

‘Stand Out Partner: Neil Millar (Head of M&A). Practical no-nonsense advice, commercial and realistic, with a great nose for what will get a deal across the line. Highly recommend.’

‘The firm has a wide range of knowledge and skills to handle all aspects and can always provide a solution to complex problems.’

‘They are real professionals with great judgement. They take the good points, leave the bad ones, and are excellent to deal with.’

‘They fight hard for their clients but are cooperative towards getting disputes heard and pragmatic in a search for a commercial resolution. Very impressive all round.’

‘Jane Standage is very acute and intelligent, firm when needed, but always respectful and good to deal with. She has excellent judgement and knows the good points in a case instinctively. I think she will become one of the best commercial litigation solicitors in Auckland and very soon.’

‘We use the Minters team for specialist HSE legal advice. We think they are best in class.’

‘Stacey Shortall is outstanding and, in our experience, the best HSE lawyer we have dealt with.’

‘They identify the people who are best able to provide a solution.’

‘Nick Frith continues to grow in stature within the market.’

‘MinterEllisonRuddWatts is a prominent law firm in New Zealand and is known for providing excellent client service.’

‘Lloyd Kavanagh is the leading investment funds lawyer in New Zealand and is always front of mind when we need someone to provide advice on the highly technical or difficult projects. Lloyd has an ability to quickly understand complex details, yet provides pragmatic and commercial advice as he truly understands the business we operate in.’

‘They have a highly experienced team and are a full service firm. Very pragmatic and business oriented. They are across the latest developments in all areas of business and run a strong educational programme for clients. They are very quick to respond to requests and if I require something outside of office hours they are incredibly flexible and always help out.’

‘Lloyd Kavanagh has been a great help to me. He has outstanding business sense built over many years working in NZ and overseas. He still seems to love what he does and so has a lot of intellectual curiosity and is always wanting to explore new developments.I have found Lloyd to be excellent to work with. I always would look to go to him with any challenging and mission critical issues.’

‘They are incredibly practical – they understand the limitations of the law and how it can be implemented in small firms as well as large global firms.’

‘Very approachable and down to earth, which is impressive given the subject matter expertise they have. Lloyd Kavanagh is incredibly generous with his time and dedication to getting the details right so that a law change is well implemented. ’

‘Incredibly responsive, the MERW team provide clear, understandable advice in a timeframe which enables agile client interactions. What we particularly like is that rather than a single response we are given options, with a risk assessment for each, as to how we can rectify specific situations.’

‘Depth of knowledge from other jurisdictions and experience across the local market.’

‘The employment team are well versed in all employment and health and safety matters, from board presentations to one-on-one advice at management level.’

‘Gillian Service and June Hardacre provide an excellent service. Always available and get back in touch shortly after.’

‘I cannot rate Gillian Service more highly. She offers measured, pragmatic and commercial advice, and provides her clients with excellent support and is engaging.’

‘The team is approachable and responsive to urgent matters. They develop a respectful and collegial working relationship.’

‘Very good depth and experience across the team that I worked with. They really know their practice areas very well which inspired confidence in us also.’

‘They have very good knowledge, expertise and experience and as a client this is comforting knowing that the advice has that backing.’

‘Minters have an excellent stable of partners and associates that have an excellent knowledge of our business over many years of providing advice on a wide range of commercial matters.’

‘MERW has a small but highly skilled resource management team. Their knowledge of the consenting process has been very valuable to us as a client. ’

‘Bianca Tree’s attention to detail and quick responses to queries that we have encountered through the consenting process has been outstanding. Her scanning across Territorial Authorities across New Zealand as they review District Plans has been very helpful.’

‘The team are intelligent, strategic and provide a great service.’

‘MinterEllison’s construction team is without doubt one of the top construction teams in Auckland. They have deep resources in talent and experience and handle large complex cases exceptionally well. They are masters of the field in construction law.‘

‘The practice is responsive and has a wide range of very skilled people that collaborate amongst the different functional areas to provide considered advice.‘

‘Very knowledgeable in their practice area.‘

‘MinterEllison’s construction team is probably unique in NZ in combining construction project and litigation experience in one specialist team.’

‘The MinterEllison team is definitely one of the most experienced in specialist construction litigation.‘

‘Janine Stewart is a very good lawyer with excellent skills and experience in construction litigation and a pleasure to work with. She is intelligent, pragmatic, outcomes focused and strategic. She is level-headed and a good team manager.‘

‘Complex issues are resolved quickly.‘

‘One of the most experienced private equity teams in New Zealand; very commercial; very responsive to timelines.’

‘Extensive transaction and private equity experience; commercial and responsive to timelines. Andrew Ryan and Phillip Crisp are excellent to work with on time-sensitive deals, especially involving cross-border structures.’

‘Accessable team. They make sure I am kept up to date with any projects that other teams at Minters are involved in that may have tax implications.’

‘Jane Parker was a standout performer for our business – her knowledge of the subject and thoughtful responses gave us the confidence to challenge our client’s legal position. Advice on new contracts was also very thorough and business-focused.’

‘The TMT team practice has supported our business as we have undertaken significant digital transformation over the past year.’

‘Tom Maasland and his team consistently provide advice of a very high-quality. Tom’s knowledge of the sector, and solution-focused advice makes him a valued business partner to our organisation.’

‘Their meticulous attention-to-detail and thoroughness in contract review and creation instils confidence, while their promptness ensures we can meet tight deal deadlines. Their professionalism and ethical approach, coupled with their deep industry knowledge, results in pragmatic solutions that align with our business objectives and address nuanced challenges.’

‘Their holistic partnership approach fosters a comprehensive understanding of our business, translating into strategic legal counsel that goes beyond the transactional.’

‘Tom Maasland and Sonya Forbes both standout due to their exceptional qualities that set them apart. Tom’s extensive knowledge, pragmatic approach, and genuine demeanour make him a trusted advisor. Sonya’s tenacity, thoroughness, and remarkable responsiveness distinguish her as an invaluable asset, ensuring that every detail is meticulously attended to and that challenges are met with unwavering determination.’

‘Tom Maasland runs the TMT practice and is a quality partner. We feel we are in good hands when it comes to our more complex telecoms transactions.’

Tom Maasland’s personal and professional service quality is top-notch. He is highly responsive, commercial, and strikes a balance between standing firm on legal points in negotiations, vs making accommodations where practical or where the deal requires it.’

‘The team provides practical, timely and no-nonsense advice, quickly distilling the issues and not wasting time on the small stuff.’

‘Richard Wells provides timely and sensible advice with a perfect balance of calmness and frankness.’

‘Fantastic people, awesome technology and amazing at keeping clients up to date with wider insurance developments and topics of interest. ’

‘Nick Frith is incredible, very responsive, goes out of his way to help. Someone you can trust to do a really spectacular job.’

‘Minters has excellent technical insurance knowledge which has been very helpful for us to call on for specialised advice. They provided very comprehensive advice.’

‘The team is always on the money with top-shelf, pithy, commercial advice that a busy in-house team can rely on. They really know our business and go the extra mile. The team is diverse and don’t fit into a homogeneous mould.’

‘Chris Young simply knows everything there is about IP law and how it applies to our business. His extensive experience and to the point advice offers reassurance. We know we are in great hands.’

‘Good coverage in the team. Good planning processes for the overall protection of our IP. Excellent knowledge of our industry/sector.’

‘Christopher Young – Recommends innovative strategies for the protection of our IP. Good planning so that we know the IP activities for the year.’

‘Chris is always engaged and thinking ahead strategically to best position our IP portfolio.’

‘The Minters team combine their commercial and technical knowledge to provide thorough and collaborative advice taking a proactive and pragmatic approach to ensure the best outcomes. ’

‘Chris Young is very knowledgeable in the area of New Zealand intellectual property law and has been invaluable in our intellectual property strategy. Chris consistently provides excellent value for money and fosters excellent client relationships. ’