The firm has opened an office in Sydney, Australia, headed by partners Michael Mills and Michelle Fox, who joined the firm from Herbert Smith Freehills. With the shift of economic power from the Atlantic to the Pacific, Australia has not only become a significant international player, but also a critical connection point for the firm in Asia-Pacific.
Michael Mills is widely recognized as one of Australia’s leading litigators for complex dispute resolution, alternative dispute resolution and insurance by Legal 500 and Best Lawyers. He has been lead defense lawyer for some of Australia’s largest and most complex disputes. He is described by Chambers Global as the “go to partner for a number of major corporations and leading directors.”
Michelle Fox has practiced in the US, the UK, and now Australia, retaining practicing certificates in all 3 jurisdictions. She represents some of Australia’s leading companies in complex commercial litigation matters and is sought by leading companies for advice on corporate exposures. Michelle is ranked as a leading individual by Legal 500 for Insurance litigation in Australia, and by Best Lawyers for litigation and insurance.
Michael and Michelle work as a team on most matters. Both specialize in complex litigation across a number of practice areas, including securities, mass tort, products liability, directors and officers liability, class actions, insurance and reinsurance disputes, as well as financial services regulatory disputes. Their more high-profile cases have included representing the directors’ and officers’ of Babcock & Brown and the directors’ and officers’ insurers of the HIH Group in regulatory and litigation proceedings arising out of what were each reported to be Australia’s largest corporate collapses at the time ($10.2 billion and $5.6 billion, respectively). As Chambers describes them, the pair are “incisive, personable and brilliant.”