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news in brief >> Bill could dampen M&A activity while boosting firms’ bottom line The Trade Practices Amendment Bill introduced into the Senate late last year will make significant changes to the way the competition aspects of a proposed merger are assessed. Possibly this could lead to less M&A activity if the bill in its current form is passed. However, rather than having a dampening impact on law firm profitability, law firms could benefit, according to Brett Bolton, a specialist in competition and trade practices law at HopgoodGanim Lawyers The changes would require the ACCC to apply a lower test to determine whether an acquisition or merger could have a noticeably negative affect on competition in a market. This would result in a significant reduction in the number of mergers and acquisitions approved each year. As it stands, a party that is interested in merging with or acquiring another business often approaches the ACCC informally to see if there will be any hurdles that need to be overcome. Bolton said that organisations are likely to bring in competition lawyers prior to that engagement if the law is passed, thus generating more work.
appointments ►► Lateral hires Name
Practice areas
Organisation coming from
Organisation going to
Meaghan Bare
Employment law
CCI Lawyers
Kligers Partners
Rebecca Barr
Aged care
Baker & McKenzie
Lynch Meyer
Anton Block
Dispute resolution
Rigby Cooke
Kligers Partners
Michael Caplan
IT & telecommunications
Blake Dawson
Gilbert + Tobin
Andrew Chew
Infrastructure
Mallesons Stephen Jaques
Baker & McKenzie
Thomas Jones
IP
Mallesons Stephen Jaques
Corrs Chambers Westgarth
David Martin
Family law
Howe Martin
Lynch Meyer
Richard Morrison
Government services
Clayton Utz
Sparke Helmore
Martyn Taylor
Competition
Mallesons Stephen Jaques
Gilbert + Tobin
Cameron Whittfield
IT & telecommunications
Russell McVeagh
Gilbert + Tobin
Julian Wright
Tax
McCullough Robertson
Hopgood Ganim
►► Promotions Name
Practice areas
Organisation
Jeff Baker
Financial services
DibbsBarker
Catherine Dermody
Competition
Gilbert + Tobin
Tim Gole
Corporate, communications & technology
Gilbert + Tobin
Mark McCowan
IP
Corrs Chambers Westgarth
Scott Sharry
Insolvency & restructuring
Clayton Utz
Mark Wiemers
Insurance
DibbsBarker
Clayton Utz
Lawyers want performance-based pay Allens Arthur Robinson corporate head Paul Quinn has called for associates’ remuneration to be based on performance, to bring them in line with partners and most of the corporate services staff. Quinn said that the traditional lockstep model of remuneration in legal partnerships has slowly broken down over the past decade. Most Australian firms have sought to strike a balance between giving pay raises just for showing up to work each day and a “US-style ‘eat what you kill’ remuneration culture”. However, Quinn said that associate salaries have essentially remained on a lockstep structure and listed several challenges to moving away from that model. Those challenges include the need for a firm to have a strong performance culture, the difficulty in administering performance-based remuneration, and resistance to changing a long-held tradition. John Moore, a partner of Thynne & Macartney, said that the lockstep model is antiquated, regardless of the level of experience a lawyer has. “Lockstep is a dinosaur and I can’t see how firms can afford to keep it,” he said. “Whether you’re 30 or 60, everyone deserves to be paid on the basis of their performance.”
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Sparke Helmore
Clayton Utz team poached by Sparkes Sparke Helmore has recruited a government services team from Clayton Utz, led by partner Richard Morrison. The team will be based in Sparke Helmore’s Canberra office. Morrison took special counsel Holly McAdam and lawyers Diana Navarro and Elizabeth Skelly with him to the new firm. Sparke Helmore national managing partner Jesse Webb said the firm is focused on procurement, legal and probity services, Federal litigation, Richard Morrison and Commonwealth compensation business. Mallesons
consumer healthcare business and its proposed acquisition of Guidant Corporation. He has also helped Primo Smallgoods obtain ACCC clearance for its acquisition of Hans Continental Smallgoods, which was approved on the basis of a ‘failing firm’ argument. Mark McCowan Jones will work out of the Sydney office and specialises in access to regulated infrastructure across a range of industries, including telecommunications, airports, ports, rail, broadcasting and water. He has particular expertise in thirdparty access issues and advises clients on competition law and the administrative law aspects of the Thomas Jones operation of regulatory regimes.
Corrs Chambers Westgarth
Corrs boosts IP team Corrs Chambers Westgarth has beefed up its IP practice by promoting Mark McCowan to partner and recruiting Thomas Jones from Mallesons Stephen Jaques. McCowan, who is based in the Melbourne office, specialises in competition and trade practices and has acted for Johnson & Johnson in obtaining ACCC clearance for its global acquisition of Pfizer’s
Mallesons
Baker & McKenzie
Baker recruits Mallesons partner Malleson Stephen Jaques partner Andrew Chew has joined Baker & McKenzie as part of its Sydney construction practice group, and as a member of the firm’s specialist infrastructure group. Australasian Legal Business ISSUE 8.2