Profile
Year of Call:
2014Overview
Michael has a broad commercial and administrative law practice, with a particular focus on competition, corporations, tax litigation, equity and trusts, insolvency, class actions, professional negligence, estates and real property.
Chambers & Partners‘ Asia Pacific guide lists Michael as a leading junior in Dispute Resolution 2020-2022 and Doyle’s Guide to the Australian Legal Profession 2017-2019 list Michael as a recommended junior barrister in a number of areas, including commercial litigation & disputes, insolvency & reconstruction, and tax. In addition, he is listed by the Australian Financial Review’s Best Lawyers® as a recommended junior counsel for commercial law, competition law and litigation and The Legal 500 Asia Pacific guide recommends him as a Rising Star in Commercial Disputes.
He advises and appears (led and alone) for public and private corporations, insolvency practitioners, insurance companies and individuals in all State and Federal courts and specialist tribunals. He is also experienced in mediations and large-scale commercial arbitration.
He was admitted as a solicitor in 2007, and was a Senior Associate in Cooper Grace Ward’s litigation and dispute resolution team prior to being called to the bar.
Recommendations
Australian Financial Review’s Best Lawyers
- 2024-25 – Listed for Commercial Law, Competition Law and Litigation
- 2021-23 – Listed for Commercial Law and Competition Law
- 2017-2020 – Listed for Commercial Law
Chambers & Partners Asia Pacific (Dispute Resolution)
- 2024 – “Michael is brilliant and someone I would strongly endorse. He is meticulous.“
- 2023 – “has a deep mastery of the commercial law in a vast range of contexts, and has the ability to apply this practically to the situation at hand“.
- 2022 – “always commercial, thorough, easy to work with“.
- 2021 – “exceptional junior counsel” and “offer[s] insights from a different perspective“.
- 2020 – “extremely bright and responsive” and “also very commercial and astute in his understanding of client objectives“.
Chambers & Partners Global (Dispute Resolution)
Listed for Dispute Resolution
- 2024
- 2022
- 2021
- 2020
The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (Commercial Disputes)
- 2024 – “‘Michael is a very clear thinker with strong technical ability and excellent strategic and tactical sense. His paperwork is very good and he has a smooth and engaging style on his feet. He is hard working, efficient, and a pleasure to work with“.
- 2023 – “one of the stars at the Bar“.
- 2022
- 2021 – “An exceptional junior counsel”.
Doyle’s Guide to the Australian Legal Profession
- 2024 – Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2024 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Leading)
- 2023 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2023 – Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2023 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2023 – Leading Construction & Infrastructure Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2022 – Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2022 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Leading)
- 2022 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Leading)
- 2021 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Leading)
- 2021 – Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2021 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2020 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Leading)
- 2020 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2020 – Leading Construction & Infrastructure Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2019 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2019 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2018 – Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2018 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2018 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2017 – Leading Tax Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2017 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2017 – Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
- 2017 – Leading Construction & Infrastructure Junior Counsel Queensland (Emerging)
- 2016 – Leading Commercial Litigation & Disputes Barristers Queensland (Recommended)
Member
Bar Association of Queensland
Tax Committee of the Law Council of Australia, Business Law Section
Career
2014 Barrister (Brisbane)
2007 Solicitor, Cooper Grace Ward (Brisbane)
Education
2007 LLB (Hons) - QUT
Directory / Industry Comments