A legal and commercial practice built around the real world needs of hotel owners, operators, property developers and investors across Australia.
I bring a rare combination of legal expertise, operational understanding, governance experience and executive level judgment, enabling clients to move quickly, negotiate effectively and manage risk with confidence.
Extensive experience advising on, negotiating and structuring hotel transactions and operations across Australia. Having acted for operators and advised owners, this practice brings genuine perspective to every side of a hotel relationship.
Advising on, drafting and negotiating HMAs, Technical Services Agreements, Licence and Royalty Agreements and associated landowner, financier and lessor deeds, for both hotel operators and owners.
End to end franchise documentation and structuring for hotel franchisors and franchisees, including the establishment of entirely new franchise programs.
Navigating the complex dynamics between hotel owners and operators, whether establishing a productive relationship from day one or resolving a dispute that has broken down.
Managing the legal and operational workstreams required to open a hotel, from pre-opening compliance through to staff engagement, licensing and operational readiness.
Establishing and reviewing compliance frameworks that give hotel businesses confidence they are meeting their regulatory obligations across multiple jurisdictions.
Experienced in managing hotel related disputes efficiently, whether through negotiation, mediation or litigation, with a focus on commercial outcomes rather than prolonged adversarial processes.
Extensive experience leading the legal workstreams on hotel and property acquisitions, divestments and development projects, from initial due diligence through to settlement and opening. Having sat on both the owner and operator sides of major transactions, this practice delivers advice informed by commercial context and a "right sized" approach to acquisitions and divestments.
End to end transaction management for hotel and property acquisitions and sales, including leased hotels, freehold hotels, management rights and business sales.
Advising on management rights acquisitions and disposals in Queensland, including caretaking agreements, letting agreements, lot owner negotiations and body corporate matters.
Legal support for new hotel developments and conversions, including mixed use developments, master planned communities and hotel repositioning projects.
Extensive experience negotiating and documenting hotel leases, from straightforward accommodation leases to complex multi-layered ground lease and head lease structures.
Senior in-house legal leadership available on demand, without the cost or commitment of a permanent executive hire. This service suits businesses that need a high calibre GC presence for a defined period, a significant project, or on an ongoing part time basis. If you have an in-house team and someone is going on leave, or you are between senior counsel or general counsel, we can help fill that gap temporarily. We can also provide ad hoc services on an as needed basis, at a fraction of the cost of an external lawyer.
Full or part time in-house legal coverage, including the day to day legal work of running a business, delivered with executive level judgment and accountability.
Immediate legal response for businesses facing a legal crisis: data breaches, regulatory investigations, injunctions, media incidents or major disputes.
Establishing new legal functions or transforming existing ones, including team structure, process design, technology implementation and capability uplift.
Practical legal education for boards, executive teams and staff, delivered in plain language and tailored to the hotel and property context.
Drawing on experience as Company Secretary and Executive Director across major hotel and property groups, this practice provides governance and compliance frameworks that are practical, proportionate and built for the way real businesses operate.
Designing and implementing governance structures that give boards and executives confidence, from charters and delegation frameworks to board reporting and risk oversight.
Building risk frameworks that balance compliance obligations with operational reality, helping businesses identify, assess and manage legal and regulatory risk proportionately.
Flexible engagement models designed to suit the scope and nature of each matter. All fees are exclusive of GST.
Standard hourly rate available on request. Suitable for discrete matters, transaction support and ad hoc advice. As we do not have high overheads, our rates are very reasonable given the seniority of the advice provided.
For engagements of two months or more, a reduced daily rate or monthly retainer may be agreed. Retainers include priority access and ongoing advisory support.
Fixed fees available for defined scopes of work:
Senior executive lawyer with more than 23 years of experience across hotel, property, construction and infrastructure. Former Executive Director, General Counsel and Company Secretary at Minor Hotels (Australasia), and General Counsel and Company Secretary at Springfield City Group, Queensland's largest master planned community developer.
Contact us to arrange an initial conversation. No obligation, just a focused discussion about how we can help.