Despite what many law firm websites say, it can be very difficult to differentiate one firm from another. The more they claim to be different, the more similar they appear to be.
Let us introduce you to a genuinely different firm. A firm offering exceptional quality legal advice to its commercial and government clients from offices located in every Australian State and Territory. A firm delivering unrivalled value for money as a result of running its business in the same way that its clients do. A firm allowing all team members to reach their potential by rewarding and promoting talent solely on the basis of merit. A firm that is not distracted by overseas ambitions. A firm without a tenured sense of entitlement.
Let us introduce you to HWL Ebsworth Lawyers.
Our rapid rise to become the largest legal partnership in Australia* shows that in our case, the differences are real. Let us demonstrate how you can benefit from those differences.
* The Australian and the Australian Financial Review, Partnership Surveys June 2021
Intellectual property law is complex and constantly evolving, particularly with new technologies continuously entering the market and the abundance of innovative ideas for products and services. With the majority of businesses now having a presence online, and the ease of accessibility of material and information, it is even more important to identify, secure and protect valuable intangible assets.
One of the intellectual property group’s strengths is being able to service clients through the whole lifecycle of intellectual property matters.
Our team provides advice in respect of the development, protection, commercialisation and enforcement of all forms of intellectual property. We also provide strategic advice on intellectual property asset management for Australia and key international territories.
We act for clients if a dispute arises or when enforcement steps are required to protect intellectual property assets including preventing counterfeit goods from entering Australia.
The group has wide-ranging experience across many industry sectors including Federal and State Government, manufacturing, financial services, technology, media, energy & resources, education, telecommunications and health, amongst others.
The group’s expertise specifically includes:
Our national team offers a range of trade mark services to clients. We provide pre-application advice which includes a comprehensive trade mark searching and clearance service. We have extensive experience registering trade marks in Australia as well as overseas jurisdictions (including under the Madrid Protocol system) utilising international agents where required.
Our trade mark services include the utilisation of a dedicated trade mark software program which enables us to track and monitor trade marks for clients, in Australia as well as in key international territories. The firm currently manages thousands of trade marks for clients, registered all over the world.
Our national patent and design team manage patents and design portfolios for numerous local and international clients. Where required we liaise with patent attorneys with the appropriate technical background to file and prosecute patent applications on behalf of clients.
Our team’s lawyers handle all aspect of design applications, from searching, registration, examination, oppositions and enforcement.
As part of our services we are able to offer our clients assistance with freedom to operate searches, patentablity and registrability advice, infringement and validity advice.
Our team partners with our clients to commercialise, license and protect our clients’ valuable assets and copyright works. We draft and negotiate complex copyright and other IP licences, particularly in the media, entertainment, technology and financial services sectors. We act for creators and acquirers of content in the print, electronic and digital media, providing innovative pre-publication advice, copyright advice and advertising clearances.
Our IP Litigation specialists advise on all forms of IP enforcement and develop strategies for the protection of IP rights. We handle litigation matters in all jurisdictions and assist in negotiating the resolution of contentious IP disputes, as well as appearing in proceedings before IP Australia.
We act for Australian and international clients in a range of industries in relation to copyright, trade mark, patent and design infringement matters and anti-counterfeiting, including issuing cease and desist notices and obtaining injunctions. We conduct enforcement and dispute resolution processes including trade mark oppositions and domain name disputes. We also provide advice regarding third party infringement claims. We remove offending online material and take active steps to protect confidential information, data, trade secrets and other proprietary material.
The media industry is continually evolving with traditional forms of media moving to digital and online platforms and subscription service models being introduced as former revenue models are under challenge. The rapid pace of change and the impact of new technology means that media lawyers must not only assist clients to chart their way through the ever-expanding range of legislation and regulation affecting the media, but also take an active role in the direction taken by governments and industry authorities.
HWL Ebsworth’s media law experts are industry leaders in the fields of media, social media and new media. Our clients include all of the major television networks, a number of radio networks, advertising agencies and many leading media and publishing companies.
We also act for music and digital entertainment industries, IT companies, e-commerce and multimedia providers, theatre and other live performance companies, film companies, film and television producers, post-production companies, performance facility managers, recording artists and companies, athletes, sports teams and celebrities. We have a nationally-renowned film practice having acted for various entities in hundreds of feature films, as well as many short films, television series and documentaries.
Our team is actively involved in media law reform. Members of our team have regularly appeared before parliamentary committees and have assisted the media with submissions to Government. We work with and for industry bodies to protect media interests. We regularly provide training sessions to media clients on legal issues and the practical implications of change.
HWL Ebsworth’s M&A team is ranked amongst the top firms in Australia by number of completed M&A deals, and is well placed to advise local and international businesses on all aspects of their acquisition, divestment and succession planning strategies.
We have extensive experience advising on sale processes, structuring and negotiation of acquisitions and disposals, competitive bid private treaty transactions, regulated takeovers, demergers, schemes of arrangement, joint ventures, MBOs, cross-border M&A (including both inbound and outbound investment), financing for acquisitions, taxation structuring, regulatory approvals including Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB), corporate restructures and reorganisations, capital reductions and share buy-backs.
Our skilled team and unrivalled value offering allows us to work effectively on large and mid-market transactions across a broad range of industries.
In recent years the Australian property market has experienced extraordinary growth, particularly on the eastern seaboard. Whilst there are a number of factors to consider, the primary reason is there is substantial local and foreign capital that consumers want to invest.
Over the past 24 months residential growth has been strong and the industrial sector has been extremely competitive. During this period we have also seen commercial properties have a resurgence due to low vacancy rates in certain markets.
We see the future of Australian property to continue to grow in a number of sectors in certain markets. In other less buoyant markets, opportunities continue to be taken on a longer term and often structured basis.
As markets and sectors evolve and change, clients require depth of experience, flexibility in thinking and exceptional value for money in identifying and dealing with risk. The size and depth of the HWL Ebsworth National Real Estate and Projects Group is particularly well placed in this regard.
With property law experts on the ground in each of our nine offices across Australia, our Real Estate and Projects team can meet your legal needs no matter where the location. We are the only Australian law firm that can offer a fully integrated service covering property development, acquisition and disposal, management and leasing, as well as planning requirements. We also frequently work with our Construction & Infrastructure and Planning & Environment teams to provide clients with seamless end-to-end project service. This ensures consistency in service delivery, reporting and invoicing, and translates to outstanding value.
The Real Estate and Projects team has an intimate understanding of the Australian property market, which ensures our lawyers are well placed to provide you with tailored and commercial advice at each stage of your property project or investment. Our goal is to develop a strategic partnership with our clients – one which recognises the importance of service excellence, cost efficiency, innovation and teamwork. This begins with developing personalised relationships and providing timely and proactive advice.
The firm has invested heavily in technology over the past few years to enable our Real Estate and Projects team to deliver cutting edge service delivery to our clients
