James has 15 years of experience as a corporate lawyer, with a practice focused on mergers & acquisitions, venture capital, corporate advisory and start-up capital raising.
James' major clients include family-owned businesses, privately-held corporations, venture capital funds, founders, entrepreneurs, investors and government departments.
James regularly works with technology businesses but has experience across a wide range of industries including financial services, manufacturing, agriculture, retail & FMCG.
James is co-lead of the firm’s Venture Capital & Startups Group and runs the firm’s 'Frank Lab' start-up accelerator program. His work with high growth companies means he acts as a trusted advisor to many founders and entrepreneurs.
James has experience working in the US, having undertaken a secondment with New York based law firm Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler, where he acted on a number of large debt and equity transactions.
James is likeable, reliable, commercial … got the transaction done in a fast turnaround, feeling comfortable we got good commercial terms out of it.
Founder and CEO
Technology company
Experience
- Advising Australian financial advisory business Wealth Architects on the acquisition of a majority stake by The Envest Group in Wealth Architects.
- Advising enterprise architecture company Avolution on its transaction with Australian private equity firm Whiteoak’s new $200 million Fund II investment vehicle.
- Advising the founders of Liberty Oil on the sale of its retail fuel business to Viva Energy Australia.
- Advising Breakthrough Victoria, the Victorian Government’s $2b investment fund, on 15 venture capital investments across a range of industries.
- Advising Invest Victoria on a range of venture capital investments as part of its Equity Investment Attraction Fund.
- Advising the owners of Casacir on the sale of its quarry business and sites to a controlled entity of ASX-listed Maas Group Holdings Limited in a deal worth approximately $70 million.
- Advising myprosperity on its $40m sale to HUB24 (ASX: HUB), a listed wealth industry provider and supplier of the HUB24 platform.
- Advising Lumi Interactive, an Australian female-founded team of game developers, on its series seed priced equity round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z).
- Advising Deluxe Corporation, a US-based payments and business technology company listed on the NYSE, on the divestiture of its Australian web hosting business to Newfold Digital for approximately $30 million.
- Advising the shareholders of DGIT Systems on their sale of the business to CSG International, a global business support systems provider.
- Advising the founders of Liberty Oil on the sale of its wholesale fuel business to Viva Energy Australia and the establishment of a new retail fuel joint venture with Viva.
- Acting for Maggie Beer Holdings (ASX: MBH) on its $50m acquisition of e-commerce company Hampers & Gifts Australia and the associated placement and underwritten accelerated non-renounceable entitlement offer to raise $30m.
- Advised leading essential oil supplier Australian Botanical Products on its acquisition by IXOM, a multinational water treatment and chemical distribution company.
- Acting for Fluence Corporation Limited on its $75 million acquisition of a large privately held US company with a global business in the wastewater treatment industry.
- Acting for the Australian distributor of Sonos products in the sale of its shares to US company, Sonos, Inc.
- Advising Note Printing Australia on a number of local and international supply arrangements.
- Acting on the restructure of Australia’s largest privately-owned construction company.