“If I was a young lawyer today, this is where I would focus,” she said. “There is so much that is new; that’s what excites people working in the space.”
Three of KWM’s six new partners in the July round of promotions work in its energy resources and infrastructure practice – Larissa Buriak and Shirley Cheng, who are both based in the firm’s Sydney office, and David Phua in Singapore.
Ms Lattey said they would “have to do a little bit of everything”.
“You are really an industry expert – and playing a big part in driving the firm’s energy transition practice.”
She said the firm was now trialling an energy-stacked training program for graduates. They still rotate through different practice areas but focus on the energy aspects; for example, in their M&A (mergers and acquisitions) rotation they would concentrate on energy plays.
A constant question for the partnership survey has been: “What are the biggest growth opportunities – by practice area – for your firm going into the next financial year?”
MinterEllison CEO Virginia Briggs showcased the firm’s 10 new partners in a slick five-minute video that was released on the firm’s website on Thursday. Three work in tech, with one from the consulting side of the business.
“The increasing growth in digital is keeping both our technology law and technology consulting practices busy,” Ms Briggs said.
Cyber threats
“This is driven by the ongoing international cyber threats faced by our clients and the growing role of AI in the business landscape.”
Richard Spurio, the managing partner of Allens, nominated “big shifts caused by technology and the energy transition”.
“The energy transition is presenting opportunities for almost all our clients; it’s driving infrastructure and M&A activity – particularly in critical minerals. ‘Green tech’ is another evolving area; it will play an increasingly important role in decarbonisation as part of the transition.”
Mr Spurio said the firm was also experiencing “increasing activity in ESG-related work across issues such as greenwashing enforcement and litigation, climate litigation and proposed mandatory ESG disclosures”.
Generative AI was “a topic of conversation with clients right across the firm – from the legal considerations, to how to leverage and govern it and what we can expect in terms of future regulation”.
“Cyber is also critical for business, and the proposed Privacy Act reforms will have a significant impact on businesses of all shapes and sizes in all sectors.
“All of these trends are intersecting with private capital; there is strong appetite for assets linked to the energy transition and in digital infrastructure – particularly fibre assets.”
Kristin Stammer, executive partner of HSF, nominated “private capital, energy transition and ESG”.
“These topics are regularly in boardrooms and meeting rooms across corporate Australia … there is immense appetite among businesses to divest old energy assets and take advantage of renewable opportunities.”
Emma Covacevich, of Clayton Utz, said the energy transition would “continue to present cross-practice opportunities relating to things like decarbonisation and demand for critical minerals”.
Second after US
Amber Matthews, of DLA Piper, said ESG covered many practice areas.
“For example, the energy transition life cycle involves our corporate and finance team assisting clients in raising capital, borrowing money and making investments; our projects team in negotiating and drafting contractual documentation for renewable energy plants; and our regulatory team in advising on the raft of reporting and other requirements.
“Australia ranks second after the US as having the most climate change litigation in the world, and we expect clients will need more support in proactively managing the risk of climate-related litigation in the future.”
Mills Oakley nominated workplace relations, while Johnson Winter Slattery and Norton Rose Fulbright suggested restructuring/insolvency.
“An economic slowdown brings an inevitable uptick in restructuring work including for distressed M&A in challenged sectors, such as construction,” said Norton Rose Fulbright managing partner Alison Deitz.
Gilbert + Tobin chief executive Sam Nickless also put forward “M&A – in certain sectors”.
“Don’t write M&A off; in the current macro environment, buyers are much more selective about sectors, with leading funds seeing opportunities in sectors such as tech energy and health,” he said.
