Real Estate
David Cooper
David is a partner in the Banking & Financial Services team at Hall & Wilcox, based in Sydney. David specialises in project finance, renewable energy projects, real estate finance, mining and resource finance and leveraged acquisition and corporate finance.
David is experienced in advising project sponsors and lenders, private equity houses and real estate developers on project finance, leveraged acquisition, corporate working capital, property and asset financing transactions, as well as complex, multi-jurisdictional and cross-border financing transactions. He has also worked with clients on priority, restructuring, pre-insolvency and debt-recovery transactions and on Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) compliance programs.
David has also previously served as deputy general counsel for Oceania for a major Japanese bank, while on secondment.
Ben Cotter
Ben is an experienced construction lawyer with more than ten years’ experience acting for clients in both transactions and disputes in both the public and private sectors. He acts for asset owners, developers, contractors, consultants and financiers in respect of construction, engineering and infrastructure projects.
With a grounding in property law and planning law, Ben is proactive in identifying and addressing potential issues before they become problematic. He is pragmatic, clear, and concise, and always looks to achieve commercially sound outcomes for his clients.
His experience includes drafting and negotiating a range of agreements including construction contracts, consultancy agreements, project development agreements and supply contracts (with and without installation).
Ben also regularly assists clients in administering their contracts and advises clients in relation to claims and disputes arising from their projects (including security of payment claims).
Jennifer Degotardi
Jennifer is a real estate partner with extensive experience in all aspects of commercial property law. In particular, she acts for clients in the government, financial services, transport and infrastructure sectors.
Jennifer provides advice on a diverse range of issues including title and development issues relating to infrastructure projects and other government developments, rail corridor access, property management outsourcing, acquisitions and disposals (including in relation to compulsory acquisitions by agreement), leasing and other land access arrangements.
Jennifer has a pragmatic and solutions focussed approach to her matters. Clients benefit from her efficient and effective management of their legal matters and her consistent drive to innovate to improve the delivery of legal services.
Maurice Doria
Maurice has more than 25 years’ experience delivering legal services for clients in both the private and public sector.
Maurice advises his clients in corporate and commercial law, contract preparation and negotiation, real estate development, governance, leasing, finance and dispute resolution.
Maurice has also worked as General Counsel at Parramatta City Council and Legal Services Director at the City of Sydney Council. Both in these roles and in private practice, Maurice has delivered client-focused legal services, ranging from high-level strategic advice on policy or politically sensitive issues to operationally focused legal support for business projects.
Maurice delivers business-minded solutions in a timely and efficient manner, and adds real value for clients by working with them in a true business partnership approach.
Kristy Dorney
Kristy has over 20 years' experience advising the property investment industry with a focus on development and construction projects, leasing and tenant disputes and property management generally.
She advises property investors, fund managers, asset and property managers, developers, and financiers on matters such as joint venture arrangements, development management agreements, fund through arrangements, construction contracts and regulatory compliance, tripartite agreements, solar installation, cladding remediation, embedded network compliance, retail shop lease legislation compliance, sustainability matters and redevelopment projects, including tenant management, relocation, and dispute resolution.
Kristy regularly advises on enforcement of leases, construction contracts, and other real estate contracts. Her experience also includes construction and real estate disputes
Stan Kondilios
Stan is a leading environmental and planning law litigator who specialises in supporting local government. His practice involves assessing and advising clients on good design of development proposals which are environmentally sustainable and proper community outcomes are reached. His studies for the Masters of the Built Environment set him as a leader in the legal profession when it comes to ESD assessments and environmental consequences on the built and natural environment.
Emily Kyriacou
Emily’s areas of practice include all areas of property law including sales and purchases of real estate, commercial and retail leasing and property related disputes.
Emily focuses on understanding the clients she works for in order to better understand and mitigate their risk. She is a trusted advisor for clients including Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Australian Unity, Japara Aged Care, the Liberty Oil Group, Care Super Pty Ltd, the Victorian Pride Centre and others.
She is building a solid reputation with clients for providing legal services in complex, large scale leasing portfolios, allowing them to mitigate risk and focus on their core business.
Emma Leys
Emma has over 25 years’ experience practising in the areas of non-contentious property, finance, corporate, commercial and local government law, with a focus on property law.
Emma acts for a broad range of private, corporate, institutional, local government, State Government department, and statutory corporation clients.
Before joining Hall & Wilcox, Emma was a partner of the property and commercial team of Western Australian firm Kott Gunning for 16 years.
Since 2019, Emma has been a committee member of the Property Council of Australia, WA Division Commercial Committee.
Shaun Whittaker
Shaun specialises in new economy transactions revolving around social infrastructure, technology and impact investment.
He has extensive experience advising on the structuring, delivery and financing of various social and affordable housing projects, build-to-rent projects, specialist disability accommodation (SDA) projects, hospital and healthcare projects, childcare facilities and technology platforms integrating with these sectors.
Shaun’s clients benefit from his considerable projects and finance expertise. He regularly advises on bankability risks in infrastructure projects, with particular experience in capital grants, impact investment funding, alternative debt funding and subsidised arrangements. His experience in structuring, joint ventures, corporate, investment and finance enables him to provide ‘whole of project’ solutions to clients.
Shaun has a deep understanding of the political, commercial and regulatory issues around funding and delivery of successful new businesses and projects, drawing on his experience acting for public and private entities, including not-for-profit and startup enterprises, to provide a holistic service to clients.
Natalie Bannister
Natalie lead’s Hall & Wilcox’s Commercial practice (which includes litigation, corporate and commercial, tax, employment, private clients, banking and finance and property and projects) and has broad experience across many areas of commercial law.
Natalie also has close to 20 years’ experience in property, planning and environment law. She acts primarily for institutional clients, utility providers, property developers and large companies. Her experience includes property due diligence, sales and acquisitions; commercial and retail leasing including managing national property portfolios; land contamination including compliance, risk allocation and liability, management and clean-up; obtaining development approvals; planning advice and compliance (including in respect of Aboriginal and European Heritage, native vegetation, traffic, noise, flooding and water quality impacts); rates and land tax objections; compulsory acquisition of land and compensation and property disputes and advice about easements, rights of way and adverse possession.
She regularly acts as an advocate before VCAT and at planning panel hearings.
Natalie has been recognised as a leading Australian lawyer in Doyle's Guide to the Australian Legal Profession. She has also been recognised in The Best Lawyers in Australia in Real Property Law every year since 2017 and was a Finalist at the 2020 Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Executive of the Year.
Natalie is customer-service focused and is constantly evolving and improving the way she delivers legal services to make it as easy as possible for clients to do business with her. Natalie takes an innovative approach to pricing, using fixed fees and other alternative fee arrangements to deliver price certainty and value for money. Natalie is responsive to clients and always does what she says she will do.
Team Services
Our highly experienced, national real estate transactions team advises on all components of property transactions, including:
- acquisitions and disposals of retail, commercial, industrial and residential property developments
- property, planning and environmental due diligence, project finance and structuring
- land access and other rights of utility operators under statute and registered interests, such as easements and restrictive covenants
- apartment developments and greenfields subdivisions
- property portfolio management
- joint ventures, development agreements and other project agreements
- all forms of commercial leasing and licensing, including retail, office, industrial leasing, agreements for lease and lease options and enforcement
- land acquisitions and compensation, and
- land valuation and rate objections and appeals.