Recognised leaders in internal investigations, regulatory inquiries and commercial litigation, Craig Phillips and Abigail Gill have joined the partnership of Australia’s leading independent law firm, Corrs Chambers Westgarth.
Corrs CEO Gavin MacLaren said: “Craig and Abby bring great experience to the firm which further enhances our commercial litigation practice, particularly in the areas of investigations and inquiries. There is increasing demand for high quality legal and strategic advice in this area and those who have had significant hands-on experience are able to deliver real value for clients.”
Corrs Head of Commercial Litigation Mark Wilks said: “At a time when the market is moving into a post FSRC regulatory environment, Abby and Craig add depth to our team’s capability in responding to white collar investigations and regulatory action.”
Over the last 30 years, Craig has acted on some of the most significant and complex litigation in Australia and the Asia Pacific. These matters have included competition and trade practices matters, arbitrations and disputes involving significant environmental and resources projects. Craig has also conducted the defence of proceedings and investigations involving regulators such as ASIC and the ACCC.
Craig has consistently been recognised as a leading dispute resolution, competition and anti-bribery and corruption lawyer by legal directories and publications including Chambers Global, Best Lawyers and others. A substantial part of his current practice involves assisting major clients to conduct internal investigations and representing clients in external investigations in connection with anti-trust and corruption compliance and enforcement matters.
Abby was formerly a senior member of BHP’s ethics and compliance team, having previously worked in BHP’s global disputes group and as a litigator in private practice. At BHP, Abby was a leader in the response to multiple investigations, and as an external adviser, she has acted on numerous complex commercial disputes, including infrastructure access, competition and regulatory matters.
Her work on some of Australia’s largest corporate investigations has included developing the strategic response to regulators, helping senior executives prepare for inquiries and drafting law reform submissions on related issues, including on bribery and corruption and whistleblower laws across multiple jurisdictions. Abby also led the implementation of BHP’s global investigations framework and enhancements to its compliance framework.