DEPARTMENT PROFILE

Ashurst

Corporate/M&A

7 ranked lawyers

Band 3

Australia

Asia-Pacific 2022 View ranking table

chambers review

department information

Ranked Lawyers

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What the team is known for

The Ashurst corporate and M&A team represents the Australian arm of a global corporate practice, respected for its proven track record in the handling of large-scale transactions for household-name multinationals. Regularly advises leading private equity houses and financial institutions across a range of issues from initial investments to exits. Prized for its innovative transaction structures, in-depth knowledge of key industrial and business sectors, and a comprehensive international and regional service which includes a noted focus on China and Japan-related work. Key clients include HOCHTIEF, Tilt Renewables and Woolworths.

Strengths

A client who describes Ashurst as "our preferred top-tier adviser in the Australian market" cites "outstanding subject matter expertise" and "exceptional customer service and commerciality" as key factors underpinning this assessment.

Another client, who praises the Ashurst team for "doing exactly what we require," explains: "They have a real focus on only fussing about the issues that matter, introducing appropriate expertise as required but removing it when the need stops, proving that they have the breadth and depth to support us."

Work highlights

Ashurst acted for Northern Star Resources on its AUD16 billion merger with Saracen Mineral Holdings, a transaction which made the combined entity the second-largest gold miner in Australia.

Notable practitioners

Anton Harris maintains a busy M&A practice across an impressive range of business sectors, acting recently for players from sectors as diverse as those of finance, healthcare and integrated services. He draws praise from a client for his "great leadership" of a recent transaction.

Elspeth Arnold operates out of the Melbourne office and practises across the M&A, corporate governance and capital markets spaces, maintaining key relationships with some of the team's highest-profile clients.

Garry Besson is a hugely respected, Sydney-based senior adviser who continues to provide insights drawn from his years of experience in the corporate space to clients engaged in high-profile transactions and reorganisations. A client praises him as a highly accessible source of "astute, strategic, commercial legal advice."

Greg Golding , based in Sydney, offers long experience of involvement in some of Australia's most noteworthy transactions, maintaining a specialisation in the oversight of listed company takeovers. He is described by one interviewee as "a superlative M&A lawyer with a very big brain."

Mark Stanbridge is based in Sydney and operates across the corporate and M&A spectrum, devoting a significant part of his practice to private equity work, acting frequently both for leading players in this sector and for household-name companies and financial services providers. Respected in the market as a "very good and well-regarded lawyer," he is described by a client as a "great and very commercial senior leader," and especially noted for his "strong key account management."

Philip Breden regularly advises on multibillion-dollar transactions for major ASX-listed and international clients across a variety of industries, including the construction, energy and manufacturing spheres. A client pays particular tribute to his ability "to manage a large workload on an M&A project easily" and the way in which he "takes ownership of the work, giving you confidence that all the aspects will be considered." He is based in Sydney.

Department Information

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Overview

Department: Corporate/M&A & Private Equity

Partner for this department: John Brewster & Anton Harris

No of employees in department: 175

Ashurst's Corporate / M&A team offers a global reach and a collaborative international network. Our clients benefit from our expertise and offices across all major commercial centres in Australia, the UK, USA, EU and throughout the Middle East. Notably, our Australian lawyers frequently collaborate with teams in Asia on both inbound and outbound transactions.

We operate dedicated global industry teams focusing on five core areas, which correspond to current M&A trends: Banks & Funds, Digital Economy, Energy & Resources, Infrastructure and Real Estate. As a result, we have been involved in some of the biggest M&A transactions across these key industries and others. Our team is proud to have been the trusted legal adviser on a number of landmark transactions in the Australian market.

We are known for executing complex, big ticket private equity transactions. We have played a key role on the largest, most significant and complex deals in the market.