International law firm Pinsent Masons has appointed four infrastructure and energy heavyweights in Australia, further enhancing its existing presence across Sydney and Melbourne and adding a new presence in Perth.

The law firm’s Scottish operation comprises of more than 500 staff based in its Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen offices. Since launching in Australia in 2015, Pinsent Masons has acted on a number of standout mandates, including the AUD$15bn Melbourne Metro Project, acting for First Solar in relation to its project finance acquisition and development of a 48MW Solar Power plant and acting for Samsung C&T on the AUD$2bn Roy Hill Iron Ore Mining dispute.

The new partners join from Norton Rose Fulbright and comprise:

• Rob Buchanan who specialises in construction and engineering disputes on major energy and infrastructure projects.
• Matthew Croagh, a leading construction and engineering disputes lawyer with a specialism in the oil and gas industry.
• Adrienne Parker, who has extensive experience in major projects, construction, engineering and resource projects across Australia, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Africa. Adrienne is also President of the WA Chapter of National Association of Women in Construction.
• Bill Ryan, who has acted upon complex arbitrations arising out of the resources sectors in Queensland and Western Australia.

Pinsent Masons’ legal resourcing hub Vario has also recently announced its expansion into Australia, its first operational base outside of the UK.

David Rennick, Head of Australia for Pinsent Masons, said: “In less than two years, Pinsent Masons has established itself among the preeminent infrastructure firms in Australia and enhanced its reputation across the Asia Pacific region. Our strong growth and high calibre of work is being recognised and we are delighted to be able to attract a stellar team of fellow specialists to join us in expanding our business into Perth. The appointments also present an opportunity to expand further into the energy sector.”

Richard Foley, Senior Partner, said: “Our vision is to be recognised as an international market leader in the global sectors in which we operate and Australia has been significant in enabling us to serve clients domestically and across Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Europe. Our relentless focus on combing skillset excellence with sector insight and innovation continues to prove popular among our clients.”

The news comes after a period of sustained investment by Pinsent Masons. In May, the firm announced plans to launch in Dublin and the acquisition of diversity-and-inclusion business Brook Graham. The month prior, the firm announced the appointment of teams in Madrid and Johannesburg to open the firm’s inaugural offices in Spain and South Africa respectively. The firm will now operate 24 offices globally.