Australasian Law Awards winners revealed

More than 600 legal professionals gathered for the Australasian Law Awards at The Star Sydney last night to see a stellar line-up of awards presented to the best lawyers, firms and in-house legal teams across Australia and New Zealand.

The evening was hosted by comic superstar Lawrence Mooney and guests were entertained with live music from Linden Furnell as well as jaw-dropping aerial theatrics from circus troupe Aerial Performance.

FTI Consulting returned as the official event partner for the fifth consecutive year with Australian Practice Leader Mark Dewar opening the night’s proceedings. The firm presented two awards - Australian In-house Lawyer of the Year to Transurban’s Julie Galligan and Law Firm of the Year (>500 Lawyers) to Allens.

The event was also supported by AIG, Clayton Utz, GlobalX, Marsh, Resolution Institute, Russell McVeagh, SP Search and Consulting, and Sparke Helmore Lawyers.

With nominations reaching a new record this year, several of this year’s judges commented on the challenge of determining the winners.

Congratulations to the following award winners:

FTI Consulting Insolvency & Restructuring Deal of the Year
Paladin Energy restructuring

Property, Infrastructure & Projects Deal of the Year
Hunter Class Frigate and ASC Shipbuilding restructure

Debt Market Deal of the Year
World Bank bond-I

Energy & Resources Deal of the Year
Santos acquisition of Quadrant

Equity Market Deal of the Year
Transurban equity raising

M&A Deal of the Year
Coles demerger from Wesfarmers

International Deal of the Year
Sale of BHP’s US oil and gas assets

Australasian Lawyer Corporate Citizen Firm of the Year
Salvos Legal

Marsh Excellence in Employee Health & Wellbeing
Lander & Rogers

Excellence in Technology & Innovation
Allens
Highly Commended: LOD - Lawyers on Demand

Legal Service Provider of the Year
Thomson Reuters Australia

Employment Law Specialist Firm of the Year
Harmers Workplace Lawyers
Highly Commended: Workdynamic Australia

AIG Insurance Specialist Firm of the Year
Carter Newell Lawyers

Boutique Firm of the Year
Clarendon Lawyers

The Resolution Institute Australian Arbitrator of the Year
Brian Millar & Scott Ellis, Francis Burt Chambers

The Resolution Institute Australian Mediator of the Year
Tom Stodulka, Tom Stodulka Mediator

Young Private Practice Lawyer of the Year (30 or under)
Madeleine McIntosh, Baker McKenzie

Young In-House Lawyer of the Year (30 or under)
Katie Dillon, Telstra Corporation

Sparke Helmore Insurance In-house Team of the Year
Steadfast

Banking & Financial Services In-house Team of the Year
Bank of Queensland

Russell McVeagh NZ In-House Team of the Year
Fonterra Co-operative Group

FTI Consulting Australian In-House Lawyer of the Year
Julie Galligan, Transurban

NZ Dealmaker of the Year
John Strowger, Chapman Tripp

SP Search and Consulting Australian Dealmaker of the Year
Rebecca Maslen-Stannage, Herbert Smith Freehills

NZ Deal Firm of the Year
Chapman Tripp

Australian Deal Team of the Year
Herbert Smith Freehills, M&A Team

Law Firm Leader of the Year (≤200 Employees)
Shane Barber, Bird & Bird

SP Search and Consulting Law Firm Leader of the Year (> 200 employees)
Rob Cutler, Clayton Utz

Clayton Utz Australian In-House Team of the Year
AccorHotels Pacific Legal Team

Australian Deal of the Year
Coles demerger from Wesfarmers

State/Regional Firm of the Year
Keystone Lawyers

Law Firm of the Year (1-100 lawyers)
Carter Newell Lawyers

GlobalX Law Firm of the Year (101-500 lawyers)
Gilbert + Tobin

FTI Consulting Law Firm of the Year (>500 lawyers)
Allens

Photos and video footage from the night will be available on the Australasian Law Awards website www.auslawawards.com.au next week.