Australia

Report: Secret plans in place to ax or demote 20 to 50 of 189 partners at Ashurst Australia

Relying on unidentified sources, an Australian business publication says the Australian arm of Ashurst is secretly planning to cull between 20 and 50 of its 189 partners in order to meet financial projections and complete its planned merger with the United Kingdom-based law firm of the same name. Doing business…

Jan 31, 2013 10:39 PM CST

Aussie Court Upholds Workers’ Comp for Woman Injured During Hotel Tryst on Business Trip

An Australian court has upheld a judge’s decision that a woman injured during hotel sex on a business trip is entitled to workers’ compensation. The Full Bench of the Federal Court ruled last Thursday on behalf of the woman, a government employee, report the Associated Press, the Independent and the…

Dec 18, 2012 2:41 PM CST

Squire Sanders to Open an Office in Sydney

Squire Sanders has announced that it will open an office in Sydney on Nov. 1. The news of the firm’s latest growth in the Asia-Pacific region follows announcements earlier this month that it had opened another office in Seoul, Korea, and had expanded in Saudi Arabia. Campbell Davidson, a mergers…

Oct 17, 2012 6:20 PM CDT

Judge Accepts Australian Lawyer’s Argument That He Forgot Stealing Two Paintings

A Sydney lawyer who stole two valuable paintings while dining in an art gallery restaurant has persuaded a judge that he doesn’t remember committing the crime. Michael Gerald Sullivan, 54, claimed to be suffering from a form of amnesia that caused him to take on the identity of an art…

Aug 17, 2012 6:53 PM CDT

K&L Gates in Merger Talks with Australian Firm Middletons

K&L Gates confirmed Thursday that it is in merger talks with the 200-lawyer Australian firm Middletons. In a joint statement published Thursday by the Am Law Daily, K&L Gates chair Peter Kalis and Middletons national managing partner Nick Nichola said, “Our leadership teams believe that the client-driven consolidation and globalization…

Aug 17, 2012 2:38 PM CDT

Ex-CFO at Major Law Firm Gets 10.5 Years in $2.6M Theft Case

A former chief financial officer at a top-tier Australian law firm has been sentenced to a prison term of ten and a half years after admittedly stealing nearly 2.7 million (about $2.6 million in U.S. dollars) from Minter Ellison between 2004 and 2011. Craig Raneberg, who served as CFO of…

Jul 26, 2012 5:46 PM CDT

Herbert Smith and Freehills OK Megamerger; 2,800-Attorney Firm Plans to Open New York Office in 2012

Partners of London-based Herbert Smith and Australia’s Freehills have agreed to merge on Oct. 1. The 2,800-attorney merged firm will open a New York office this year, as well as in Africa and Seoul, reports Bloomberg. An office in Germany is planned next year. The Australian (reg. req.), the Financial…

Jun 28, 2012 3:31 PM CDT

Coroner Blames Dingo for Baby’s Disappearance 32 Years Ago

A coroner has sided with an Australian couple who long maintained that their baby was snatched and killed by a dingo. The coroner ruled Tuesday in a fourth inquest, finding that a wild dog known as a dingo carried the 9-week-old girl way from the tent at the family’s campsite…

Jun 12, 2012 1:46 PM CDT

Judge: Lawyer Not ‘Unjustifiably Abused, Belittled, Humiliated, Threatened, Undermined or Bullied’

Describing a “regrettable” email exchange between two Melbourne law firm colleagues and friends as “a classic storm in a teacup,” an Australian judge has nixed a seven-figure damages claim by a former partner who said she was undermined, humiliated and harassed after she went on maternity leave. Partner Fiona Brown,…

May 18, 2012 9:05 PM CDT

UK Megafirm Linklaters Forms Alliance with Australia’s Allens Arthur Robinson

A United Kingdom megafirm has joined forces with Australia’s Allens Arthur Robinson, agreeing to form an alliance and engage in joint ventures in Asia. However, the team effort with London-based Linklaters is not expected to involve a formal merger, according to the Australian (sub. req.) and Legal Week. The new…

Apr 23, 2012 9:56 PM CDT

Judge Awards Workers Comp to Aussie Woman Injured on Business Trip During Hotel Room Hookup

An Australian judge has ruled that a woman injured while having hotel sex on a business trip is entitled to workers compensation. The woman, a government employee, was injured in 2007 when a wall-mounted light fell on her during the sexual encounter with an acquaintance, report the Daily Telegraph and…

Apr 19, 2012 12:29 PM CDT

4th Inquest Starts re 1980 Baby Death in Australia; Meryl Streep Movie Told Story of Unsolved Case

It now appears that Lindy Chamberlain was speaking the truth when she told authorities in 1980 that her 9-week-old baby had been taken, and presumably killed, by a wild Australian dog as her family was on a camping trip in the country’s outback. But at the time she was suspected…

Feb 24, 2012 9:20 PM CST

Herbert Smith Is Mulling Possible Megamerger With Australia’s Freehills; Plans NY Launch in 2012

Herbert Smith, a venerable London-based firm with over 1,000 lawyers, is in preliminary talks with Australia’s Freehills concerning a possible megamerger. If the two firms decide to combine, they would not only have an attorney roster of 2,000 lawyers or more but would have a presence on every continent except…

Feb 6, 2012 11:03 AM CST

Australia’s Slater & Gordon Snaps Up UK Personal Injury Firm, Russell Jones & Walker, for $84M

Slater & Gordon, the world’s first publicly traded law firm is poised to grow again after agreeing to pay 53.8 million pounds (about $84 million in U.S. dollars) for a United Kingdom law firm that also specializes in personal injury work. The acquisition of Russell Jones & Walker is authorized…

Jan 30, 2012 11:55 PM CST

Partners of Australia’s Mallesons OK Game-Changing Combination with China’s Largest Law Firm

Partners of one of Australia’s top law firms voted today to approve a merger-like combination with the biggest law firm in China. Partners of King & Wood are expected to vote tomorrow on the potential tie-up with 170-partner Mallesons Stephen Jaques, Legal Week reports. If approved, the melding of the…

Nov 23, 2011 8:05 PM CST