AH Lawyers

Click on the lawyer's name for further details.

John Atanaskovic

is a founding partner, and is often identified with the high profile transactions in which he has been involved, which include many of Australia's landmark deals and litigation. He has been rated by the UK Legal Business magazine as the top corporate lawyer in Australia and one of the ten top corporate lawyers in the world.

Tony Hartnell

is also a founding partner, and has had a distinguished legal career in both government and private practice. He was the founding chairman of the Australian Securities Commission. Apart from his reputation as an exceptional lawyer, he is also sought after for his commercial acumen, holding a number of senior board positions with ASX listed companies.    

Danny Farrugia

was formerly a partner and is now a special counsel (through Aequus Counsel Pty Ltd), with  a particular interest in infrastructure, and the hospitality and tourism industries. Danny's clients include global organisations with some of the most recognisable names in these industries, and his practice frequently involves the resolution of complex cross-jurisdictional legal issues.

Richard Dukes

is a partner, recognised nationally and internationally as one of Australia's leading tax lawyers, and heads up our tax practice. Richard recently joined us from another large Australian national firm, where he was a senior tax partner and practice head of the national tax group. Prior to that, Richard was a partner and then managing partner of Rosenblum and Partners.

Lisa Wright

is a partner and has over 15 years’ post admission experience in a wide range of dispute resolution and litigation matters. In addition to representing parties in various courts and tribunals (focussing on commercial and corporate litigation), Lisa is experienced in techniques of alternative dispute resolution (such as mediation). Lisa also has assisted clients to respond to formal investigative proceedings, such as royal commissions and investigations by regulatory authorities such as ASIC.

Larissa Pickford

is a partner and has a wealth of “blue ribbon” experience in complex M&A and fundraising transactions. She also has a particular interest in the strategic management of commercial disputes, including hostile takeovers, commercial litigation, the acquisition of minority interests in a contested commercial context, boardroom disputes and negotiating strategic exit arrangements in shareholder disputes.

Jeremy Kriewaldt

is a partner and specialises in mergers and acquisitions, and corporations and securities matters generally.  He is also acknowledged as a leading expert in financial product development, especially equity derivatives and futures and securities market products.

MICHAEL SOPHOCLES

is a partner and joined Atanaskovic Hartnell after 15 years as a commercial litigator with other top tier law firms in Australia and New Zealand. Clients value Michael for his pertinent legal analysis, his utilisation of civil procedure to achieve client driven outcomes (rather than letting the procedure drive the client), and his excellent track record in delivering superior outcomes.

TIM D CASTLE

is a partner with 24 years experience in resolving difficult problems across a wide variety of legal, business and government roles. He was a leading commercial barrister for 15 years at Seven Wentworth chambers, has been a general counsel at a major private corporation, and was a senior executive leader at ASIC, and deputy chair of a NSW statutory body responsible for law reporting.

JAMES WHEELDON

is a partner and specialises in mergers and acquisitions and corporate advisory matters. He has a wealth of experience in a diverse range of transactions, and he is particularly valued for his ability to formulate sensible commercial solutions to complex problems. Prior to joining AH, James practised law in the United States for several years with a top international firm, where he worked on many innovative deals; he also has experience in financial services regulation and funds management gained working in the Regulatory Policy Branch of ASIC and then in-house for a listed financial services company.

Michael Eyers

was formerly a partner of the firm and is now a consultant, has substantial experience in business and government, having been seconded as the deputy chief executive of the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games.

While AH partners are closely involved in all client matters, they are supported by a group of highly qualified lawyers (numbering between two and three times the number of partners of the firm) well experienced in their respective specialist fields.