International
For international companies wanting to enter into the Australian market, or Australian companies needing advice on expanding into international markets, strategic advice is needed to maximise international growth opportunities.
Our international team has long-term experience in advising foreign or foreign-owned clients on complex cross-border transactions and disputes and developing a practical understanding of the business environment in Australia.
We bridge legal, linguistic and cultural differences in a manner that is beneficial to our clients. Our partners and senior lawyers who work in geographic-focused areas of our international practice are native speakers and understand first-hand the commercial and legal issues of doing business in that country.
We act for internationally known companies from all over the world, stock-exchange listed companies in Australia and overseas, and medium-sized companies conducting their business in Australia.
We act for many of our international clients as their Australian counsel, assisting with multidisciplinary matters across a number of core areas of expertise and sectors.
Drawing on our significant international experience and our wide-ranging network of contacts, our international lawyers facilitate our clients’ access to relevant local experts in and outside of Australia and improve the efficiency with which cross-border transactions are conducted.
We have a range of guides available to help companies with their market entry into Australia, including how to set up a business, the taxation system, regulation of inbound investment and more.
To further assist companies looking to enter the Australian market, we’ve developed innovative tools like our Market Entry App and FIRB App. These products provide foreign investors with initial insights into navigating regulatory requirements and understanding key considerations for a successful market entry.
We regularly publish news and insights updates. We also publish the Smarter Lawcast podcast, where our experts discuss topical legal issues. The ‘Doing Business in Australia’ podcast is specifically aimed at our international audience.
‘Hall & Wilcox are ahead of others in terms of … being easy to deal with while remaining experts in their field. You feel confident to rely on them. And they have a great attention to detail and efficiency that some other law firms never seem to provide.’
We have international practices established with specialist teams for a number of worldwide regions and countries, including:
Asia
Europe
United Kingdom
North America
China
As the leading China legal practice in Australia, we offer the most comprehensive and experienced team dedicated to advising Chinese clients on all aspects of investing and conducting business in Australia and globally. Our clients include state-owned enterprises, listed companies, private equity and investment funds, financial institutions, family offices, ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and emerging technology ventures with links to China.
Our integrated China-Australia advisory team brings together Chinese-speaking lawyers across key practice areas, including:
- Corporate and commercial law
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Banking services
- Capital markets and fund formation
- Real estate investment and development
- Construction and infrastructure projects
- Energy and environmental law
- Medical and healthcare services
- Litigation and dispute resolution
- Immigration
- Employment and workplace relations
- Private client and estate planning
The members of our China Practice are fluent in Mandarin and culturally fluent in both Chinese and Australian business contexts. We understand the unique regulatory, transactional and relationship-driven considerations faced by Chinese investors operating in Australia.
We maintain strong relationships with leading independent law firms in China and Hong Kong through long-standing international networks, enabling us to deliver seamless cross-border legal solutions. Our collaboration with global accounting and advisory firms further enhances our ability to support clients with integrated commercial outcomes.
Our work is consistently recognised in leading legal directories, including Chambers Global, The Legal 500, and Best Lawyers Australia.
For more information in Mandarin, please visit our dedicated 中文 page, where you can explore our Chinese legal services in greater detail, and find out details about our Chinese lawyers.
South East Asia
Our South East Asia (SEA) Practice is one of Australia's most comprehensive legal teams dedicated to supporting businesses and investors from Southeast Asia. We advise clients on all aspects of doing business in Australia and internationally, offering tailored legal solutions for enterprises headquartered or affiliated with SEA countries including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
Our SEA-Australia legal advisory team provides end-to-end legal services to:
- SEA-based corporations and subsidiaries
- Financial institutions and listed companies
- Private equity and investment funds
- Ultra-high-net-worth individuals
- Technology startups and scale-ups
Multidisciplinary expertise
Our lawyers bring deep expertise across:
- Corporate law & M&A
- Technology & innovation
- Energy & environment
- Fund management & financial services
- Real estate investment & development
- Healthcare & medical services
- Commercial litigation & dispute resolution
- Immigration & employment law
- Private wealth & succession planning
Cross-border legal experience
We understand the cultural and regulatory differences between Southeast Asia and Australia. Our bilingual lawyers, including Mandarin-speaking legal experts, ensure seamless communication and culturally sensitive legal advice.
We maintain strong relationships with independent law firms across SEA, and are active members of international legal networks, enabling us to support cross-border transactions and regulatory compliance with confidence.
Recognised excellence
Our SEA Practice is consistently ranked in Legal 500 and Best Lawyers Australia, reflecting our reputation for excellence and client satisfaction.
Europe
Headed by Oliver Jankowsky, our Europe practice has extensive experience in advising clients from across Europe on all aspects of Australian business law.
While the European Australian Free Trade Agreement negotiations are on hold for now, we continue to see healthy levels of interest from German, French, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Swiss, Austrian, Swedish and Belgian investors in particular.
Our team includes Dr Wolfgang Babeck, Stefan Fenk, Mark Inston, Anne Utecht and Albert Ponte.
For clients who speak German and Spanish, please see our dedicated Deutsch and Espanol pages.
United Kingdom
Australia and the UK have a strong relationship, owing to our shared heritage, common values, aligned strategic outlook, and trade and investment links.
Chris Brown leads our UK practice, together with a team of highly experienced experts. Chris is a commercial lawyer with more than 20 years’ experience in international corporate transactions and advice. Chris is a dual-qualified lawyer admitted to practice in Australia and in England and Wales.
North America
The United States is Australia’s largest direct investor. However, it is a two-way partnership, with many Australian companies investing in the US. Combined, the investment relationship is almost as large as Australia. This is indicative of a deep relationship between countries that have a great deal in common.
Our US team is led by Jacqui Barrett, who has extensive experience in a wide range of corporate and commercial legal transactions working with both Australian and international companies. Jacqui regularly advises and assists clients with mergers and acquisitions, corporate structuring, corporate compliance and governance, capital raisings and managed investment schemes, ensuring adherence to all applicable Australian and international regulations.
Advised German-headquartered company Putzmeister on its acquisition of 100% of the share capital of Australian-based CPE Machinery Pty Ltd.
Acting for Intershop Communications AG, a German-based eCommerce software provider, in the entering into of major IT contracts with various clients including Telstra and Australia Post.
Advising Austrian-based Knill Group on their acquisition of an Australian company.
Advising Einhell Germany AG on their acquisition of the Ozito group of companies.
Advising Walder Group on the acquisition of Laboratory Systems .
Advising PharmaLex on the acquisition of a majority interest in Australian health science consultancy Brandwood CKC.
Assisting numerous businesses from Austria, Switzerland and Germany on their market entry to Australia.
Advised UK-headquartered international architectural practice Weston Williamson + Partners on the Australian aspects of the company’s sale to major consulting and engineering group Egis.
Acting for the head company of a UK-based family-owned global publishing business with distribution in the US, Asia and Australia. The project involved the restructure and sale of the Australian business.
China
- Assisting Chinese clients with business migration issues and applications for business visas.
- Assisting a large Chinese developer in its series of acquisition of commercial properties in excess of A$500 million.
- Acting for the head company of a UK based family-owned global publishing business with distribution in USA, Asia and Australia. The project involved the restructure and sale of the Australian business.
- Advised ABC Pastry Holdings on its $33.7 million business sale to Nissin Foods Company Limited.
- Worked on behalf of Shaunglin Automotive Parts Manufacturing Co on purchasing Australian and Chinese operations from Geely Holdings Group worth US$500 million.
- Acting as General Counsel for an international payments-based fintech start-up, including advising on some of the largest fintech fundraising rounds in Australia at the time from international investors such as MasterCard, TenCent Holdings, and Sequoia Capital China.
South East Asia
- Acting for a Malaysian company conducting prospectus due diligence on an Australian subsidiary prior to the listing of the parent company on the Bursa Malaysia
- Acting for a Malaysian group in respect of the operations of an Australian aged care business
- Acting for a large privately owned Singapore headquartered group on two acquisitions in Australia
- Providing Australian law advice to Singapore headquartered clients on multi-jurisdictional SEA transactions involving Australian subsidiaries (both buy-side and sell side roles)
- Providing regulatory advice to corporates seeking Australian law advice on laws across the Asia Pacific
- Advising on a wide range of property transactions and property fund matters involving SEA clients and investors in Australian property
- Providing FIRB advice to SEA clients
- Advising SEA clients on a range of insurance and cyber security matters
- Acting for SEA headquartered banks and financial institutions on Australian law matters
- Providing Australian migration law and employment law advice to SEA clients
- Providing IP, technology and trademark law advice to SEA clients on Australian law
- Advising on disputes for SEA clients in Australian courts and on the enforcement of security in Australia
- Providing advice to private clients and family offices on tax, estate planning and disputes where family members, assets, structures or disputes are located in Australia
- Providing Australian tax law advice in respect of restructures involving SEA corporate groups with Australian entities
- Advising Straits Real Estate (a Singapore real estate investment company) on the issuance of secured notes to Maxcap (an Australia real estate investment company) in connection with the development of the residential project known as ‘Aspire’ in Melbourne
- Acting for the head company of a UK based family-owned global publishing business with distribution in USA, Asia and Australia. The project involved the restructure and sale of the Australian business.
- Advising one of the world’s largest international skincare and cosmetics companies headquartered in South Korea on the acquisition of a significant minority interest in shares in an Australian company with a well-known luxury skincare brand.
Acting for a US public company still run by the founding family in the local acquisition of a licensee to protect its Australian retail operations.
Advising founders of a major Australian juice company on the sale of a majority stake in their investment group to a US-based private equity firm.
Advised Lumi Interactive, an Australian female-founded team of game developers, on its US$6.75 million (approximately A$9.76 million) series seed priced equity capital raise round.
Advised Deluxe Small Business Sales, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of NYSE-listed Deluxe Corporation, on the sale of all its shares in Hostopia Australia Holding Co Pty Ltd to Newfold Digital, Inc.
