The firm says the milestone cements its position as the oldest continuous law firm in Australia
Last Friday, Allens celebrated its bicentennial – a rare milestone for Australian businesses.
The firm, which claims to be the oldest continuous law firm in the country, welcomed the event with a compilation of anecdotes about Allens. The compilation has been released on the firm’s 200 website, via a podcast and in a book entitled Allens: The first 200 years.
The anecdotes cover the story of founder George Allen, the firm’s relationship with Westpac, its support of diversity and inclusion initiatives like acting for First Nations peoples and backing marriage equality, its work on the first Stolen Generation trials, and its contribution to the establishment of World Series Cricket.
The firm also announced that it had recently assisted Octopus Investments Australia with the launch and first closing of two open-ended renewable energy funds.
The funds, named the Octopus Australia Sustainable Investments Fund (OASIS) and the Octopus Renewable Energy Opportunities Fund (OREO), will be co-invested into a renewable energy portfolio that includes wind, solar and storage projects. Allens said that the platform will fund the whole renewable energy life cycle.
Lead partner Penny Nikoloudis explained that the investment platform would “support Australia's transition to renewable energy and a sustainable future.”
“The successful launch of this investment platform reflects the continuing emphasis by institutional investors on ESG and renewable energy assets as an investment class in Australia and globally,” she said.
Nikoloudis was joined on the team by senior associates Jamil Diu and Mai Go; associate Jin Pang; and lawyer Marc Privitelli in working on the funds aspect of the deal. On the corporate side, partner Wendy Rae, counsel Andrew Wong and company secretary Regina Gracias pitched in.
Partner Michael Graces and associate Tina Tran provided advice on the projects end.
