From its offices in Sydney and Melbourne, Ashurst advises on numerous high-profile deals across the real estate, private equity and infrastructure sectors and - in line with the social impetus towards clean energy - has increasingly been working on projects surrounding renewables. The team has been bolstered by the arrival of partners Neil Pathak and Susannah Macknay from Gilbert + Tobin. Pathak now shares leadership of the practice with John Brewster and Anton Harris. Other names to note include skilled practitioners Phil Breden, who specialises in construction, manufacturing and gaming, and Mark Stanbridge, who has over 25 years of experience advising on local and cross-border transactions.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'Diligent, pragmatic, commercial, accessible, responsive.'
- 'Ashurst's Corporate and M&A Practice was pivotal in successfully delivering our project. They worked tirelessly in helping us understand the market/ industry and regulatory landscape in Australia. With the steady hand of Ashurst guiding us along the way, we were assured and confident to successfully close the transaction.'
- 'Phil Breden - Diligent, pragmatic, commercial, accessible, responsive.'
- 'We very much appreciate the level of engagement that we get from Phil Breden and his quality of advice.'
- 'Ashurst is one of our most trusted advisers that we trust with our most complicated transactions.'
- 'Their client service and quality of advice is of the highest quality. We also appreciate Ashurst looking to use innovation (including through Ashurst Advance) where appropriate, and we have used this service on transactions where there are large mechanical document reviews needed.'
Key clients
- ANZ Banking Group
- Mirvac
- CapVest Partners
- Macquarie Capital
- Consolidated Press Holdings
- Woolworths Group
- Advent International and Cobham
- Brookfield Infrastructure
- Infomedia
- Pickles Auctions
- The Growth Fund
- Mitsui
- Swyftx
- SAS Trustee Corporation (NSW State Super)
- Woolworths Group
- Sibanye Stillwater and Sibanye Resources Australia
- Gentari Renewables Australia (Solar)
- Northwest Healthcare REIT
- Ark Energy
Work highlights
- Advised ANZ Banking Group on the A$4.9bn proposed acquisition of Suncorp Bank and on the divestment of its margin lending loan portfolio to Leveraged Equities.
- Advised Mirvac on the replacement of the trustee and manager of AMP Capital Wholesale Office Fund (AWOF).
- Advised Woolworths on its acquisition of a 55% interest in the Petspiration Group and on its acquisition of an 80% interest in MyDeal.com.au.
Lawyers
Hall of Fame
The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
John Brewster
AshurstNext Generation Partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
Susannah Macknay
AshurstPractice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Neil Pathak, John Brewster, Anton Harris