Partners smile, juniors suffer?

👋 G’day

Today’s brief:

• Partners top law firm satisfaction survey – shock.

• Fortescue leans on Reddit and launches an “Ask-Us-Anything” employee portal.

• Woodside Energy warns of energy failure risks.

Enjoy your morning coffee ☕️

PRACTICE POINTS

High Court backs self-reps

• The High Court has ruled that self-represented law firms can be awarded costs for their solicitors' work. The Court said denying such costs would go against the "fundamental principle" of equality before the law—and risk putting solicitor-litigants at a disadvantage: Lawyerly

• CBA is pushing the government to require telecoms, social media, and banks to jump into action within 48 hours to shut down scams once they’ve got verified intel. Right now, the proposed Scams Prevention Framework gives them up to 28 days to act: The Australian

• Treasurer Jim Chalmers dropped a consultation paper proposing to streamline the Australian Accounting Standards Board, the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, and the Financial Reporting Council into one powerhouse body. The goal is a one-stop shop for all things standards—and yes, that includes climate-related financial disclosures.

WORD ON THE STREET

DLA ditches IT support

• After DLA Piper shifted to cloud-based computing, dozens of IT staff were warned they could be made redundant. But fear not, DLA IT staff in Australia: you’re off the hook: RollOnFriday

• Bethany Lo Russo, former legal counsel at Dovetail Research, has filed a human rights suit against the AI start-up. In response, Dovetail is trying to suppress the details of her “scandalous” originating application. Lo Russo’s got SLF Lawyers in her corner, while Dovetail’s rolling with the big guns at Gilbert + Tobin: Lawyerly

• After 6 years as special counsel at Clayton Utz, government lawyer Clare McNamara has jumped ship to Wotton Kearney as a partner in their Canberra office. Over her 25-year career, McNamara has guided clients through two major Royal Commissions—one on Child Abuse and the other on Aged Care: Lawyerly

• Dentons snaps up two heavyweight partners. Melbourne’s Matt Coleman—an ace in infrastructure, energy, and major projects from Baker McKenzie—and Sydney’s financial specialist Louise McCoach from G+T (formerly a special counsel) look to boost the firm's competitive edge: Lawyers Weekly

TALKING POINTS

Partners’ paradise

• A Shock to absolutely no one, partners are the happiest bunch. A RollOnFriday survey on law firm employee satisfaction reveals partners have a solid 77% satisfaction rate. Could it be something to do with those million-dollar paychecks? Second and third are business services staff at 72% and trainees at 70%. But the mood takes a dive in the mid-range, with junior solicitors scoring just 62%—and senior solicitors scoring the lowest score at 59%.

• Fortescue has rolled out an “Ask-Us-Anything” portal where employees can post anonymous questions to management, which are then upvoted by colleagues and answered in a weekly meeting. So far, there is a lot of silliness—like one employee asking for an in-house lotto à la Gina (yep, the Gina who gives away $100k bonuses to 10 lucky Roy Hill staff at the Christmas party): AFR, SMH

• If elected, the Coalition promises to let Aussies dip into their super to grab up to $50k for a house deposit. Naturally, Big Super isn’t on board, arguing that it’ll jack up house prices, crush young Australians' homeownership dreams and slash retirement incomes. The Grattan Institute calls BS, saying the impact will be minimal on a $10 trillion housing market: The Australian

• “America first”, Trump stirred the pot on Tuesday, suggesting the US should "take over" and redevelop the Gaza Strip—with a little help from Saudi Arabia. He reckons it could be the “Middle Eastern Riviera”. The Saudis swiftly rejected the proposal, and now the White House appears to be backtracking.

TREASURY

DEAL ROOM

Nissan says no

• Nissan has pulled the plug on merger talks with rival Honda, nixing a deal that would have created the world’s third-largest automaker. The market seems to be cheering the decision, with Nissan's share price jumping more than 8% by day’s end.

• Allianz and Insurance Australia Group are circling a bid for WA's top insurer, RAC, according to insiders. They're weighing their options to snag a key asset in the market. It’s likely Barrenjoey will have a hand in the potential deal: Bloomberg

• Brookfield Capital Partners taps G+T to back it in the three-way bidding war for Insignia Financial. Yesterday, Brookfield jumped into the bidding fray, rubbing shoulders with Bain Capital and CC Capital Partners in the race for the Aussie wealth management firm: AFR

• Australia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Future Fund, is doubling down on Aussie assets—think infrastructure, private credit, and data centres—to hedge against inflation and global protectionism. CEO Raphael Arndt says Aussie assets, once seen as pricey, now look “fair,” and the fund’s 12.2% return in 2024 proves this local pivot is paying off: Bloomberg

SECTOR SPECIFIC

Corporate Australia bans DeepSeek

🚜 DIGGERS

• The renewable energy market takes another hit as Norway’s Equinor cuts its 2030 renewables capacity target from 12-16 gigawatts down to 10-12 gigawatts: Reuters

• BP makes a big bet on Iraq. Oil giant BP is set to pour $25bn into redeveloping four oil and gas fields in Iraq, marking a major step in the country’s efforts to attract foreign investment after years of war and corruption: Reuters

• Adani, the Indian giant behind the Carmichael coal mine, is close to securing a $332m debt deal for its Queensland port, signalling a shift in lenders’ readiness to fund fossil fuel projects: AFR

• Woodside Energy boss Meg O’Neill warns that if Australia can't deliver cheap, reliable energy, it's a major government failure. She didn't hold back either, taking aim at environment activists for pushing political agendas over what's best for the nation: The Australian

🏦 FIN

• Macquarie’s reshuffle. MacCap is closing its US debt capital markets arm to double down on private credit. The move will shake up around 80 staff—some will transition to new roles, while others will be parting ways. It's a clear strategic pivot in the firm's US playbook, but no word yet of any similar moves down under: Bloomberg

• Consulting is on the up. Demand for advice on boosting sales and slashing costs is sparking a long-awaited rebound in the consulting sector, according to the head of PwC Australia’s revamped advisory business: AFR

🏡 RETAIL & REAL ESTATE

• With return-to-office mandates on the rise, property trusts like Centuria Office REIT are poised for a rebound. The shift back to the office could be the lifeline the sector needs after two tough years, hammered by rising interest rates and the flexi work movement: AFR

• Estée Lauder, owner of Clinique and MAC, is axing 5800 to 7000 jobs in a corporate shake-up as it braces for a 10-12% drop in sales. The company’s facing a tough time with Asia’s duty-free slump and weak demand in China and Korea, warning of “continued volatility and low visibility” ahead: AFR

📱 TECH

• Following the government’s lead, TPG, Optus, and CBA have banned employees from using DeepSeek. Other companies? They’re declining to comment, likely to avoid becoming targets for Chinese hackers: The Australian

• Facebook events, move over—Apple's launched Apple Invites, available to iCloud+ subscribers, allowing users to create and send invitations. No iCloud+ account or Apple device is needed to RSVP, though. The feature rolled out with iOS 18.3, might just be Apple’s way of drumming up some extra iPhone sales after lacklustre quarterly results: Forbes, AFR

Want to tell us something? 

Reply to this email to tell us what we should cover.

New here?

👋 You’re in good company. You’re reading this alongside readers from HSF, KWM, Allens, Corrs, G+T and more. Sign up now for insights delivered directly to your inbox.