Here’s who triumphed on the big night
More than 600 legal professionals gathered for the Australasian Law Awards at The Star Sydney last night to see a stellar line-up of awards presented to the best lawyers, firms and in-house legal teams across Australia and New Zealand.
The evening was hosted by comic superstar Lawrence Mooney and guests were entertained with live music from Linden Furnell as well as jaw-dropping aerial theatrics from circus troupe Aerial Performance.
FTI Consulting returned as the official event partner for the fifth consecutive year with Australian Practice Leader Mark Dewar opening the night’s proceedings. The firm presented two awards - Australian In-house Lawyer of the Year to Transurban’s Julie Galligan and Law Firm of the Year (>500 Lawyers) to Allens.
The event was also supported by AIG, Clayton Utz, GlobalX, Marsh, Resolution Institute, Russell McVeagh, SP Search and Consulting, and Sparke Helmore Lawyers.
With nominations reaching a new record this year, several of this year’s judges commented on the challenge of determining the winners.
Congratulations to the following award winners:
FTI Consulting Insolvency & Restructuring Deal of the Year
Paladin Energy restructuring
Property, Infrastructure & Projects Deal of the Year
Hunter Class Frigate and ASC Shipbuilding restructure
Debt Market Deal of the Year
World Bank bond-I
Energy & Resources Deal of the Year
Santos acquisition of Quadrant
Equity Market Deal of the Year
Transurban equity raising
M&A Deal of the Year
Coles demerger from Wesfarmers
International Deal of the Year
Sale of BHP’s US oil and gas assets
Australasian Lawyer Corporate Citizen Firm of the Year
Salvos Legal
Marsh Excellence in Employee Health & Wellbeing
Lander & Rogers
Excellence in Technology & Innovation
Allens
Highly Commended: LOD - Lawyers on Demand
Legal Service Provider of the Year
Thomson Reuters Australia
Employment Law Specialist Firm of the Year
Harmers Workplace Lawyers
Highly Commended: Workdynamic Australia
AIG Insurance Specialist Firm of the Year
Carter Newell Lawyers
Boutique Firm of the Year
Clarendon Lawyers
The Resolution Institute Australian Arbitrator of the Year
Brian Millar & Scott Ellis, Francis Burt Chambers
The Resolution Institute Australian Mediator of the Year
Tom Stodulka, Tom Stodulka Mediator
Young Private Practice Lawyer of the Year (30 or under)
Madeleine McIntosh, Baker McKenzie
Young In-House Lawyer of the Year (30 or under)
Katie Dillon, Telstra Corporation
Sparke Helmore Insurance In-house Team of the Year
Steadfast
Banking & Financial Services In-house Team of the Year
Bank of Queensland
Russell McVeagh NZ In-House Team of the Year
Fonterra Co-operative Group
FTI Consulting Australian In-House Lawyer of the Year
Julie Galligan, Transurban
NZ Dealmaker of the Year
John Strowger, Chapman Tripp
SP Search and Consulting Australian Dealmaker of the Year
Rebecca Maslen-Stannage, Herbert Smith Freehills
NZ Deal Firm of the Year
Chapman Tripp
Australian Deal Team of the Year
Herbert Smith Freehills, M&A Team
Law Firm Leader of the Year (≤200 Employees)
Shane Barber, Bird & Bird
SP Search and Consulting Law Firm Leader of the Year (> 200 employees)
Rob Cutler, Clayton Utz
Clayton Utz Australian In-House Team of the Year
AccorHotels Pacific Legal Team
Australian Deal of the Year
Coles demerger from Wesfarmers
State/Regional Firm of the Year
Keystone Lawyers
Law Firm of the Year (1-100 lawyers)
Carter Newell Lawyers
GlobalX Law Firm of the Year (101-500 lawyers)
Gilbert + Tobin
FTI Consulting Law Firm of the Year (>500 lawyers)
Allens
Photos and video footage from the night will be available on the Australasian Law Awards website www.auslawawards.com.au next week.