United’s Aussie Adventure
Long established commercial law firm, Mullins Lawyers, is the first firm in the Southern Hemisphere to join United Employment Lawyers.
Mullins Employment and Industrial Relations Partner, Alan Strain, commented “A lot of our clients are doing business in the United Kingdom and Europe nowadays. We are also finding clients of other firms are undertaking work in Australia, Queensland in particular, and Asia and the Americas. Given the specialised nature of employment and industrial relations law, we want our clients to have access to genuine specialists and be able to reciprocate that advantage when work needs to be undertaken in our jurisdiction. This growing network enables us to assist clients on an international scale and provide them with direct access to local specialists we know and can trust.”
Mullins Managing Partner, Curt Schatz, supports the decision to join UEL and sees it as a positive move for the firm in line with its growth strategy. Mr Schatz said, “We encourage our partners and lawyers to seek out new opportunities and infiltrate new markets. Alan has more than twenty years’ experience in employment and industrial relations law in the United Kingdom, including serving as an employment judge, so he can offer great insight for clients and referrers operating both out of or in these jurisdictions.”
Based in Brisbane, Mullins Lawyers operates in most legal areas on a national scale and uses national and global referral networks to support clients in jurisdictions not governed by Queensland or national laws.
Mr Schatz said, “We don’t pretend to be a national firm, but that doesn’t mean we can’t service our clients on a national scale. We will cross whatever geographical boundaries necessary to get the best outcomes for our clients. In some cases, that means being supported by legal networks.”
Malcolm Mackay, founder and Chairman of United Employment Lawyers said, “we are delighted to welcome Mullins as the first Antipodean member firm of UEL. They have a tremendous reputation in Australia and an international outlook on employment law. We have a shared outlook on the benefits of collaboration to further the interests of clients. Market conditions for employment lawyers in Australia are not dissimilar to those in the UK and the exchange of knowledge and pooling of experience benefits member firms as well as their clients. UEL is a growing national and international network. While member firms refer employment matters to each other, an important part of what we do relates to the business of employment law. While the law may be different in each country, issues such as running an employment law service and developing new business models apply anywhere. We support member firms on these issues.”