Building & Construction

Building & construction is a risky business. You need a lawyer on your side who understands how a construction company works and the pressures you face.

We assist developers, builders, subcontractors, consultants and suppliers by drafting, reviewing, and negotiating their contracts, and advising on issues throughout the project lifecycle.

We are at the forefront of the industry, with a keen understanding of the changing landscape of the construction industry and a working knowledge of property businesses drawn from our experiences at the coal face.

Commercial Property

Buying Commercial Property

No matter the size of the asset or its complexity, we handle all commercial property transactions.

When considering buying commercial property, you may need to do some fact finding on your target. Our due diligence system enables you to assess risks in even highly complicated assets, allowing you to refine your best offer, prior to committing to a purchase. We can assist you to review and negotiate the contract for your most favourable outcome, and help you on your way to a successful tenure.

Talk to us about structuring your purchase for your best advantage in tax planning, GST considerations and asset protection.

Selling Commercial Property

When you decide to sell a commercial asset, it is important to consider the risks associated in the sale, including the conditions on which you are offering the property and providing due diligence information to prospective buyers.

To secure a good sale, you need our responsive and knowledgeable legal team to ensure a smooth and hassle-free transaction with no hangovers, so you can focus on your next project.

Corporate Structuring

Setting your goals and intentions for a new project or business, and implementing a structure that will enable you to achieve them, is critical to success. Whether your concern is asset protection, tax effective business structuring, succession planning or joint venture projects with unrelated parties, we have you covered.

We work closely with your advisers, such as accountants and financial planners, to understand your overall business and propose a structure to suit your needs.

If you have set out on a structure that no longer works for you, please talk to us about a cost-risk assessment of your restructuring options.

Family

Families are complex.

Separation and divorce happens.

But it doesn’t have to be a battlefield.

We are family lawyers, mediators, settlement and collaborative lawyers. We can work with you to restructure your family and finances in a dignified and civilised way.

It’s common for couples to start a relationship with different levels of wealth. It’s also common for a couple to have built wealth together.

How to protect your wealth if you separate can be the elephant in the room. We will help you to have that conversation together, and to protect your wealth.

You can reach agreement about your property settlement and children’s care arrangements without going to Court. We can formalise your agreements in Consent Orders to ensure the matter is finalised.

Whether you’re calling it “unconscious uncoupling” or just calling it a day, we’ve got the roadmap to help you through it calmly.

Lending & Project Finance

We have extensive experience assisting private and AFSL accredited lenders in property transactions in the ACT and NSW, as well as advising developers and builders on complex project finance arrangements. Whether it is a straightforward matter or a highly complicated funding deal, we have the interest (pun intended) and the experience to get you the best outcome.

Whether you are advancing funds, or a developer seeking advice on a proposal for senior and mezzanine finance for your next project, we’d love to hear from you.

Leasing and Asset Management

As a private investor, a self-managed superannuation fund or an institution, having a solid lawyer with an understanding of asset management, yield calculation, leasing and the rental market is critical to protecting your asset and your cash flows.

A lease is not a lease, and ensuring that you have the right lease in place and a lawyer that really understands its effect makes the difference between a good deal and a great deal.

Our keen interest in property, eye for detail and hands-on experience in asset management and development makes us the adviser of choice for owners of new and existing retail, commercial and industrial assets.

Property Development and Planning

Having worked in property development, we understand the joys and challenges you face. We draw on our real world experiences and our next level nerdiness to give you highly tailored and responsive advice for your projects.

Ask us about:

• legal due diligence for site acquisition
• joint venture structuring and tax planning
• planning advice and studies
• project conveyancing
• land and construction funding
• construction and commissioning
• unit titling
• defects liability and owners’ corporation disputes

Project Conveyancing

Our bread and butter, we provide conveyancing for dwellings in your off-the-plan development without fuss and for a fixed fee.

Our extensive experience in development management makes our project conveyancing services the best in Canberra.

We take time to get to know you and your project and keep you informed at every step, so you can leave the administration of your project conveyancing to us while you focus on finding your next site.

Tax

Having access to tax expertise is invaluable when setting up a new venture, finishing a project, when restructuring and in planning business succession. We can assist you with income tax planning, corporate tax, GST issues and private ruling applications.

We like to work closely with your advisers, such as your accountant, to understand your business better. Together we can develop strategies that respond to the needs of your business and help you grow smarter, quicker, more efficiently and more flexibly.

Ask us about self-managed superannuation funds, SMSF borrowing for property investment, business succession, and private wealth including estate planning and updating your will.

Wills and Estate Planning, Private Wealth and SMSFs

You worked hard to create your wealth, and you need someone onside to assist you to protect it.

Dealing with asset protection, self-managed superannuation and writing your will often feels daunting, but it doesn’t have to be.

With our expertise in tax, estate planning and superannuation, we consider the big picture where most lawyers only deal with each issue in isolation.

You will feel in good hands with our team, who includes a published author on the subject of testamentary trusts and advanced estate planning strategies.

No matter the complexity of your family or business structure, we can find a solution.