Competition/Antitrust

HWL Ebsworth operates a full-service competition law practice with a broad national footprint, maintaining representatives in seven of the firm's nine national offices. The team advises across the full spectrum of competition and consumer law issues, including merger clearance mandates, attracting particular respect for its handling of contentious matters, criminal cartel cases and consumer disputes. Key clients include Coles Supermarkets Australia, Sony Australia and Viva Energy.

"The team was very available and able to jump on calls to speak to the other side, and turned things around quickly. They have the ability to focus in on the right matters and get value."

"They gave excellent advice that was clear, concise, practical and always timely. They had broad knowledge of commercial transactions and were very quick to understand the client's business."

HWL Ebsworth advised Singapore Airlines on an alliance and structured agency arrangements with Virgin Australia to achieve a range of outcomes that could not be achieved through the ACCC code sharing authorisation that the ACCC had granted to Virgin Australia.

Richard Westmoreland acts extensively on matters involving alleged breaches of the Australian Competition and Consumer Act, being particularly well known for his assured handling of criminal cartel cases. He also acts on the corporate advisory side, providing competition-related strategic counsel during M&A and joint venture transactions. He is based in Sydney. "He is excellent and very good at conveying complex legal issues in a simplified great way. He asks great questions." "Richard is highly competent and provides a very high level of service." "He's client-focused and technically excellent." "He gets really involved and is very pragmatic. He puts himself in the client or regulator's shoes and does a lot of heavy lifting, which is so very helpful. His experience is fantastic."