Corrs Chambers Westgarth > Melbourne, Australia > Firm Profile

‘The team demonstrates a great proactive approach to data protection and adds value in terms of reporting legal developments.’

‘Arvind Dixit is calm, commercial and very knowledgeable. Great to have him on call for data incidents.’

‘This team is a standout in terms of its knowledge of our business, support in terms of resourcing and value-adds and general relationship management. We trust the team immensely, and have worked with them on numerous tricky issues over the years. We appreciate their innovative thinking.’

‘Philip Catania in particular feels like a true partner for us in achieving our objectives. He is a stand-out in brining industry insights from his extensive overseas contacts, from his other clients and from his own thinking. Justin Gay also warrants special mention – he is like an extension of our team.’

‘They understand our ‘business context’, our brand, and the systems we use. Their ability to work across platforms is flexible and up to date. Very clear and accountable billing.’

‘Arvind Dixit’s legal insights and context knowledge are incredibly valuable, and he has stand out communication and people skills which are especially useful in times of crisis or breach.’

‘The Corrs TMT team has assisted me with complex data sharing issues. The team’s market experience and work across major clients in this space is a real asset. The team is able to provide relevant, practical advice in a timely manner.’

‘Phil Catania’s breadth of knowledge and experience is incredibly impressive, and he is an extremely safe pair of hands for the most sensitive and high-risk matters, providing commercially-astute, succinct and accurate advice.’

‘This team is a market-leading practice in construction arbitration disputes. They are sophisticated, responsive, thoughtful and very strategic.’

‘Joshua Paffey is an impressive lawyer with deep intellect, common sense and a commitment to the profession as well as his clients. A standout in international arbitration as practiced from Australia.’

‘The team is highly competent and experienced, with a real focus on achieving the commercially most satisfactory outcome for their clients.’

‘Michael Earwaker is an extremely experienced and able litigator, with astute judgment and excellent capacity to organise litigation. Carla Mills is a rising star.’

‘Significant resourcing so all deadlines are met with quality advice and work. Expertise in legal principles and legislation, but with the ability to measure this against commerciality appropriately. Value adds included an ad hoc referral service for general enquiries and an advice hotline. Partners are extremely accessible and responsive.’

‘Andrew Stephenson is an intellectual powerhouse and has great strategic insight.’

‘Responsive, knowledgeable, committed and loyal.’

‘The team is laden with talent and well structured. It knows how to devise a strategy and implement it.’

‘This is a highly experienced and expert team of dispute resolution lawyers. They are true litigators, with the experience and skill to run cases of all kinds. From the partners to the most junior associates, the Corrs team is knowledgeable, agile and committed to getting the best results for their clients. They leave particular experience in large commercial litigation, in class actions and in regulatory proceedings. You would be hard pressed to find a litigation team that runs more cases in Australia.’

‘Corrs’ dispute resolution and litigation team conducts the highest level of complex matters with conspicuous ability while retaining client focus. The team is highly competent and experienced, with a real focus on achieving the best outcome for their clients in important, including “bet the company”, litigation.’

‘Corrs, and in particular their dispute resolution and litigation practice, has the ideal balance of expert, extremely talented, collaborative, and diligent corporate lawyers (capable of handling the biggest and most complex legal matters), with down to earth, relatable, and practical people who you would actually like to spend time with outside of work. Their legal advice is always straightforward, considered and easy to digest, and genuinely takes your business and goals into account. I can say without doubt that they are tireless and there any time you need them to be, and no matter is too small or big for them to handle in that way.’

‘Mark Wilks is a first-class commercial litigator. His ability to simplify complex legal problems and work with clients to achieve them is second to none. David Anthony is strategic and diligent, and works tirelessly in his clients’ interests. He is efficient and organised.’

‘Simon Johnson is a top flight litigator whose commercial acumen and strategic nous are among the best I’ve ever witnessed. His high level of client empathy and style of communication enable Simon to navigate through the dispute resolution environment, whether against a public or private opponent. I’ve personally appreciated Simon’s upfront investment in relationships, without expectation of minimum volumes or the like. That disarming removal of expectation is very much valued on a client level.’

‘Mark Wilks is one of the leading commercial litigation and dispute resolution solicitors in Australia. He is highly experienced and skilled in the most difficult and complex litigation. In additional to being highly skilled, Mark’s commercial and forensic skills, combined with a client focus and understanding, means that he is able to consistently achieve the best outcome available to his clients. Katrina Sleiman is a highly skilled, hard working and client focused commercial litigation partner. She has the highest quality skill set, and is able to run the most difficult commercial litigation matters. I have no hesitation recommending Katrina for any commercial dispute. She is also a delight to work with. Simon Johnson is a very experienced and skilled commercial litigation partner. He has a wide range of experience across difficult commercial disputes. He is able to bring that experience together with an attuned client focus to achieve the best available commercial result for his clients.’

‘Frieda Chan in particular is one of the most talented lawyers I’ve come across. She is unflappable, always prepared, and capable of navigating and handling very complex litigation and legal arguments. Simon Johnson likewise is a like a keel, always calm in navigating his team and clients through tough situations and complicated disputes. I would recommend either of them most highly.’

‘The team has some superb senior associates. Frieda Chan, in particular, works tirelessly for her clients. She is a skilled litigator and a star in the making.’

‘Airlie Fox has made an outstanding contribution to the project, and she deserves to be recognised as one of the leading practitioners in the project/infrastructure space. In addition to her excellent communication, interpersonal, legal and commercial skills, she also possesses a strong depth of knowledge of the industry and its key players; a value add on any major transaction.’

‘Carla Mills has consistently proven herself to be a dedicated and extremely thorough lawyer with excellent technical skills. We could not be happier with the service she has provided to us over many years.’

‘Carla Mills is the legal adviser you want in your corner when anticipating a dispute, or when actively engaged in contested proceedings. Carla is the market leader in construction and infrastructure dispute resolution.’

‘Matthew Muir is a highly engaging, reliable and respectful partner who goes above and beyond to support clients to protect their interest, whilst providing commercially astute counsel.’

‘Chris Ryder is an exceptional, stand-out partner. His experience and intellect put him ahead of other partners I have worked with previously. He is very thorough, transparent, and project manages matters exceedingly well.’

‘Jey Nandacumaran is an excellent lawyer; very studious and collegiate in his dealings with consultants, lawyers and clients.’

‘The team has great strength in depth – not just a large number of top-rated partners, but the rest of their team are strong technically, strategically, practically, and commercially. All of this is done with a relaxed, pleasant style that makes them a pleasure to deal with.’

‘Corrs have delivered ongoing pragmatic and effective advice in a large litigation matter. Highlights include an innovative billing regime, significant resourcing, excellent use of technology platforms, and regular communication.’

‘The Corrs team, especially Stephen Sterns, has a overall great reputation of being excellent in IP. We had a large litigation that was quite complex and the team was able to provide strategically, and efficient, advice during the litigation.’

‘David Fixler is good. Has a good understanding of the overall area relative to our work’

‘A strong team of talented IP practitioners who dig deep to understand the problem to find the solution.’

‘Eugenia Kolivos is a fantastic IP and commercial lawyer who provides sector specific advice.

‘David Fixler and Grant Fisher are exceptional lawyers who specialise in the life sciences & healthcare sector.’

‘Corrs is a large high quality all service law firm which adds strength to their IP practice. Within their IP practice they have many leading individuals which gives them collective strength and experience.’

‘Excellent skill and experience in technology contracts.’

‘The IT team at Corrs Cambers Westgarth are our go-to firm for IT, privacy, and tech procurement matters.’

‘Arvind Dixit and Rob Ceglia have taken the time to get to know our business. All the advice we receive is thoughtful, useful and pragmatic.’

‘I have been using Corrs for advice on Australian telecommunications matters for several years, and their work has always been of a very high standard. They are consistently reliable, authoritative and professional, but also accessible and easy to deal with. They understand the need to consider the commercial requirements behind legal matters, and give sensible and thorough advice every time.’

‘James North has been an excellent adviser on telecommunication matters. He is always quick to respond to requests, and gives detailed, thoughtful and clearly written advice. He is both professional and friendly.’

‘Phil Catania’s deep understanding of the technology, media and telecommunications market and broad experience working with major clients in this space is a real asset, and has been impressive throughout our work together. He is able to provide relevant, practical advice in a timely manner.’

‘Arvind Dixit and Frances Wheelahan in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications practice – I can’t speak highly enough of their excellent, commercially-astute advice, and reliable, responsive and friendly management of matters. I entrust all of my most sensitive and important TMT-related work to this team.’

‘The team has excellent commercial property expertise and understanding of market factors, and are able to very well represent and advocate for their client’s positions. Working with Corrs through the pandemic was also seamless.’

‘Rebecca Field provides clear and well presented advice, is very prompt and understanding of tight timelines. Her clarity around timing and achievable deliverables in particular is very helpful in managing stakeholder expectations.’

‘Corrs Chambers Westgarth are very approachable, available when required and have a one-team approach to complex transactions where the leading partner/associate is across the status of multiple tranches of work.’

‘Strong integrity and reliability demonstrated. Good commercial skills interwoven with obvious legal abilities.’

‘The team at Corrs Chambers Westgarth have been agile when dealing with our unique development of hotel, entertainment and branded residences. Their ability to provide clear and strong advice has enabled our development to deliver Australian record residential sales outcomes.’

‘Natalie Bryant and her team at Corrs Chambers Westgarth are proactive in advising if they see any issues forthcoming and always make themselves available to assist the client promptly. Natalie’s ability to find solutions that work for all parties in complex situations, explaining the details in common (non-legal) terms are a credit to her and Corrs Chambers Westgarth.’

‘Daryl Clifford is very accessible and is across all aspects of our business and approach to commercial negotiations.’

‘The team works as a complete team from end to end on a transaction, meaning that the banking teams closely works with the restructuring and insolvency team so that the facilities are always structured correctly to allow for a simple and efficient enforcement process.’

‘They are one of the most commercial restructuring teams in the market.’

‘Cameron Cheetham has one of the best strategic restructuring minds in the country and can always find a way through the problems. Michael Cathpoole is fantastic at insolvency litigation.’

‘Patrick O’Grady is good and designs documents to allow for simple and easy enforcement.’

‘A team that can set a clever litigation strategy and then stick with it. Excellent talent throughout the ranks. Efficient operators that issue bills that represent value for money.’

‘Abhi Chopra is extremely capable for his level; can run a large complex matter day to day with minimal oversight.’

‘The team seamlessly embeds a range of skills and expertise to bring thoughtful, commercial and dynamic solutions to the table. They collaborate across restructuring, insolvency and front end banking using the spectrum of skills within their team. This differentiates this team from other teams in the market.’

‘Sam Delaney, conveys a sense of trust that he will manage a client through an insolvency event without ever losing sight of the commercial objective and the need to ensure inhouse legal teams and project management teams are equally part of the commercial and legal outcomes.’

‘Commerciality, proactivity and speed of responsiveness are all features of Corrs’ banking and finance work.’

‘Rommel Harding-Farrenberg leads a strong team of partners and colleagues. Rommel’s no-nonsense approach to structuring and negotiation is appreciated.’

‘Excellent service, expert skills, speed of execution and delivery and proactive engagement with clients. The team have a very clear understanding of the extent and importance of client relationships.’

‘John Mosley is excellent to deal with and a very experienced lawyer.’

‘Deep commitment to industry knowledge.’

‘The expertise, dedication and capability of lawyers that support the competition practice are key strengths of Corrs Chambers Westgarth.’

‘Richard Flitcroft has been the primary partner engaged by our in-house legal team to advise on a variety of competition and consumer law matters. His skill set is diverse and specific industry expertise dealing with regulators valuable in identifying strategic approaches to take in complex situations.’

‘Makes the effort to understand our business, provides valuable resources.’

‘Mark McCowan and Ian Reynolds are both fantastic. Value their attention to detail, practical advice, willingness to explain complex areas and efforts to understand our business.’

‘Corrs team in international trade law possesses both the expertise and experience to advise and assist clients efficiently and effectively, especially from a litigation perspective.’

‘Andrew Korbel possesses both the expertise and experience to advise and assist clients efficiently and effectively, especially from a litigation perspective.’

‘Jodi Gray and the team did an absolutely amazing job for us, in a situation where even some of our people did not believe a positive outcome was possible.’

‘Jodi Gray was amazing in all aspects – hearing about the business, building an argument, filtering the best inputs for an outcome and ultimately managing all the parties involved.’

‘Quick turnaround times, very responsive, and technically strong.’

‘Felicity Saxon is a stand-out partner; she provides sound advice and also takes the time to understand our unique concerns.’

‘ The fact that Corrs Chambers Westgarth was able to act as our one-stop shop was much appreciated and even crucial to successfully close the transaction. In short, the size of the law firm is appreciated, in particular by any foreign client. It has been a pleasure to work with the Corrs Chambers Westgarth team.’

‘Thanks to Felicity Saxon’s excellent availability we had always immediate access to the relevant expert. She was always on top of the transaction, i.e. was aware of possible issues and able to represent Corrs Chambers Westgarth even if it came to any topics which have been reviewed by other experts of the law firm.’

‘This practice stands out for the breadth and depth of its experience and expertise, coupled with its excellent responsiveness and commercially practical advice.’

‘Sandy Mak provides commercially practical, sound legal advice, driven by her extensive experience, which instills clients’ confidence in her practice.’

‘The team is very knowledgeable and pragmatic.’

‘Brilliant team of dispute lawyers. Technically excellent and diligent.’

‘Chris Pagent in particular is a star performer. Chris explains difficult concepts in an easy-to-understand manner and provides practical and commercial solutions.’

‘The team is well-balanced. They are all subject-matter experts, but depending on what you require and the information you need are able to tailor what they provide you.’

‘Chris Pagent is a standout. Head and shoulders above the competitors and always one step ahead in terms of what we need and want from external lawyers.’

‘Brad Woodhouse is excellent at distilling the issues for general consumption. For instance, when we are not often dealing with class actions, he does well at providing an understanding of what is involved and then advising what needs to be done from a client perspective.’

‘The team is a well-oiled machine that clicks into gear.’

‘Brad Woodhouse is technically excellent, but his ability to harness this with practical reality is his standout quality.’

‘As a large firm, Corrs still retains agility to adapt to the needs of their individual clients. No job is too small or too big. They also value diversity in teams and have a strong social conscience as a firm.’

‘Anthony Arrow’s direct and no-nonsense approach is refreshing. Anthony has a deep understanding of the energy and infrastructure industry, and can expertly predict and help mitigate the significant issues that arise during major projects across a multitude of sectors. He is able to identify the balanced approach for a range of stakeholders during all stages of project development and execution.’

‘Corrs has developed a strong energy team, that makes them a compelling choice in this space. With a combination of partners will decades of experience, and younger partners with significant international and in-house experience, they have a great bench strength to be able to provide advice on smaller and larger energy law matters.’

‘In-depth industry knowledge and sound understanding of our business and risk profile. Extremely responsive with excellent service.’

‘Paul Careless provides exceptional service levels and knowledge of the law. Provides wise counsel with client’s best interests at heart.’

‘The team at Corrs are very experienced and bring this experience to bear in the advice they provide. They also provide very sound commercial insights into transactions and are a valuable corporate advisor to the business’

‘Michael MacGinley is a very measured partner and gains the trust of his clients by ensuring he truly understands a query or issue before offering advice.’

‘Anthony Lepere is knowledgeable, has a great manner with clients and counterparties alike, and is a trusted advisor to our business.’

‘Always about the people and those that can provide the detailed technical advice, possess great communication and negotiation skills with the varied stakeholders and achieve a commercial outcome.’

‘Anna White’s ability to understand project issues coupled with her extraordinary knowledge of complex and voluminous environmental and planning laws, allows her to distill difficult problems into solutions that are easily understood by those responsible for implementing them. Practical solutions are essential to good project outcomes and Anna understands this in spades.’

‘Anna White is an excellent lawyer. She is extremely knowledgeable in environment and planning matters, is very personable, can prioritise her responsiveness appropriately, understands the broader commercial and other considerations facing an organisation and is always striving to improve the team’s service delivery.’

‘Anna White’s strength is her ability to translate complex legal and regulatory issues into practical, accessible legal advice.’

‘Michael Leong is not only able to provide technical advice, but strategic advice that incorporates his current knowledge of the complete development ecosystem.’

‘Christine Covington and Max Newman are outstanding in both expertise and service delivery’

‘Michael Leong is always prepared and knowledgeable on all matters. I am always very happy to work with any team member from Corrs.’

‘Christine Covington ensures matters are allocated to the appropriate team and gets involved as required. Her service level is unmatched. Always available and responsive; always goes above and beyond.’

‘The financial services regulatory practice at Corrs has been an invaluable resource to the litigation funding industry over the last 2 years.’

‘What distinguishes Corrs from other financial regulatory practices that we have worked with, is that Corrs will take both a commercial and practical approach to matters. The financial services regulatory practice at Corrs delivers advice in a digestible and clear format, and we have found the team members we have worked with to be impressive and responsive.’

‘Fadi Khoury is approachable and makes himself available to junior members of our company. Fadi is incredibly pragmatic in his approach to regulatory matters. His depth of knowledge in financial services regulation (in particular, in the litigation funding industry) is unsurpassed by any other regulatory partner.’

‘Their technical detail and ownership was outstanding. We trust them completely.’

‘Steven Rice is a valued and trusted partner with an in-depth knowledge of our business. He provides high quality and practical advice, and it’s no wonder we followed Steven to his new firm, Corrs.’

‘Corrs is undoubtedly the leader in the litigation funding industry. They embraced what was new legislation in 2020, and partnered with the industry association and key players to deliver what quickly became the industry standard suite of documents. The responsiveness and ability to adapt other experiences to a new segment enabled a much simpler and more efficient transition.’

‘Fadi Khoury is not only an expert on all matters related to financial services, but his thorough and well-thought approach is second to none.’

‘Fadi Khoury is a problem solver, proactive and highly effective in liaising with regulators, clients and the industry to find common ground and sensible solutions.’

‘Corrs’ Labour and employment practice in Melbourne is of outstanding quality. The depth and breadth of the team is a strength, with specialist expertise across the board.’

‘Sarah Clarke delivers high quality, succinct, and clear advice at all times. She is a delight to work with.’

‘Broad range of relevant legal and industry expertise across a strong team. Corrs are professional, responsive, and accurate.’

‘First class expertise and demonstrated leaders in the field of media and entertainment law, with the results to prove it.’

‘Jim Micallef in particular is one of the country’s most experienced defamation lawyers. His knowledge is unrivalled. He also has a personality that clients warm to and respect.’

‘Top quality legal support and advice is both strategic and tactical.’

‘Richard Leder has experience and knowledge of our business sector, and service orientation. He anticipates our needs, knows our risk appetite, our brand and values – alongside his legal expertise this make Richard a key valued and trusted strategic legal advisor.’

‘This team delivered its service and advice seamlessly across the country; we never noticed a difference in time zone. Their collaboration with our various internal teams really made for a much easier transactional process in what was an incredibly complicated and multifaceted transaction.’

‘Anthony Lepere really took the time to understand our business and our drivers; it truly made all the difference to the quality of the advice that was provided, time and time again. Anthony took the time to listen and delivered tailor-made advice every time. He also appreciated the relative high sophistication of the business and pitched his advice appropriately.’

‘Great and well-experienced team.’

‘Strong experience and financing industry knowledge.’

‘High quality service, receive good amount of the partner’s time.’

‘Paul Brickley is across the detail, understands the commercial implications and what items are important for sponsors and investors in project finance.’

‘Considered and commercial approach to advice.’

‘The Corrs team bring to the table a great understanding of their client’s business and are strong advocates for their clients. They have an excellent understanding of the law supported by real strategic thinking. A pleasure to work with.’

‘The team has experience acting for the regulator and corporations and individuals in relation to ASIC and ACCC matters. That experience puts them in a powerful position.’

‘The Corrs team kept us updated all the way through the process and were easy to talk to and discuss strategies and issues. They worked together as a team and could pick up on each other’s work, they all knew what was occurring.’

‘I worked with numerous Corrs solicitors – from clerks to partners – in a very difficult matter, which required full time work for six or seven months. The team performed very well in a very stressful environment.’

‘The individuals in the team were understanding and had solid knowledge of our matter. They always got back to us in a timely manner and were able to explain things as the matter went along.’

‘Abigail Gill is an attentive partner who is always available. She has very strong technical skills and is able to understand and navigate complex issues. Her legal advice is always very clear, well reasoned and accurate.’

‘Callum Strike and Kirsty Sutherland are very good in the area, bringing strategic insight and a deep understanding of the issues.’

‘Abigail Gill and Norah Wright were first-rate in their approach, work ethic, and quality of work. They were stand-out performers.’

‘Brad Robinson is very knowledgeable, with a lot of experience and has been able to guide us as to market precedent and practice as we become more active in the securitisation market.’

‘They have an outstanding reputation, which is important, but more important was the team’s availability when needed, and willingness to give us clear, sound, commercially-practicable advice.’

‘We can highly recommend Russell Philip.’

‘Brad is an excellent securitisation lawyer with a strong commercial focus.’

‘Russell Philip has been outstanding as an advisor to the company. He is a very good sounding board not just on legal issues but in proposing considered commercial solutions to issues.’

‘The Corrs WHS practice is fantastic and experts in the field.’