Dispute Resolution

Ashurst maintains a deep bench offering leading international corporate and government clients global reach and expertise across key industry sectors, with noted strengths in the handling of construction, energy and resources, and financial services disputes. In addition to having a comprehensive commercial litigation capability, it is active on both domestic and international arbitration, prominent in the class action sphere and in disputes concerning road and rail infrastructure, and sought after to advise on both domestic and international regulatory investigations. Key clients include Rio Tinto, KPMG and McDonald's.

"They are very good, responsive and detail-focused."

"Ashurst offers excellent responsiveness and work quality."

"The team has good partner and senior associate depth."

Ashurst was appointed by Westpac and two of its subsidiaries in civil penalty proceedings commenced by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission in relation to their failure to properly disclose, and as a result their improper charging of contribution fees.

Andrew Carter, based in Sydney, acts extensively on investigatory and contentious regulatory mandates, frequently representing leading banks and other prominent financial services providers. "Andrew Carter has a practical understanding of rules, strategies and regulatory perspectives and huge attention to detail." "Andrew is an outstanding litigator, whose attention to detail is second to none. His strategic insights are always extremely well thought through."

Nicholas Mavrakis acts prominently for leading players in the financial services and resources spheres on high-profile investigatory and regulatory mandates. He is based in Ashurst's Sydney office. "Nick was recommended to us and he is exceptional and exceeded those expectations."

Angela Pearsall is based in Sydney and stands out for her handling of large-scale commercial litigation in the Australian market, notably including class actions generated by significant insolvency-related disputes. "She is extremely responsive to clients, hard-working and very client-focused." "Angela is a good lawyer, good people manager and a good client manager. She is very good to work with."

John Pavlakis stands out for the versatility of his class action practice, encompassing the representation of both public and private sector clients across an unusually varied range of issues. He is based in Sydney. "He is an exceedingly experienced partner who continues to come up with critical solutions for litigations." "John has been around for quite a while and continues to be very easy to deal with."

Rani John stands out for combining the regular handling of mandates with investigatory or regulatory aspects with a noted flair for the representation of individual executives. She is based in Sydney. "Rani John is able to present very well to company boards of directors, explain intricacies of regulatory investigations and prosecutions and manage expectations for potential downside. She is very detail-focused and very experienced." "She is dedicated to her job, possesses extensive knowledge of the field and is extremely hard-working. She is experienced, highly responsive and goes above and beyond in her work for us."

Ian Bolster is based in Sydney and represents domestic and international clients from the financial services and retailer sectors in civil penalty proceedings and class action defence, among other matters. "Ian is an outstanding litigator who is fully engaged with his matters and delightful to deal with."

Wen-Ts'ai Lim enjoys widespread market recognition as a highly effective litigator of long standing in the disputes space, where he has practised for over 30 years. He is based in Sydney. "Wen-Ts'ai Lim is a very experienced legal practitioner in the litigation area."