Michael heads the firm's construction law team along with Graeme Christie. He is one of New Zealand's leading construction and infrastructure lawyers with 20 years of project and dispute resolution experience across all industry sectors. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Michael was a structural engineer and he remains a member of IPENZ.
Michael is the author of the Building and Construction title in the Laws of New Zealand publication by Lexis Nexis (New Zealand's leading practitioner text). He was a member of the drafting committee of NZS3910:2003, the New Zealand Standard Conditions of Contract for Building and Civil Engineering Construction and is a member of the current NZS Committee reviewing that standard. Michael also had a lead role in the drafting of the latest two editions of the IPENZ/ ACENZ Conditions of Contract for Consultancy Services. He also has extensive experience of contracts based on international standard forms including FIDIC and NEC.
Michael's experience extends across virtually all industry sectors, including building (commercial and residential buildings, prisons, hospitals, and sports and entertainment facilities), roading, transport, mining, tunnelling, water and wastewater, solid waste, energy, and telecommunications. A key speciality is major infrastructure projects and innovative contract structures such as public/private partnerships (PPPs) and alliancing.
His expertise includes the resolution of construction and engineering disputes. Michael has extensive experience in litigation, arbitration, adjudication, dispute review boards, mediation, negotiation, and other forms of alternative dispute resolution.
- The International Who's Who Legal Construction and Project Finance 2010 - Leading Lawyer
Examples of Work
Michael was or is the lead legal adviser (in relation to "front end" procurement, contract and project advice, or in relation to dispute resolution) on the following projects:
- Auckland Transport - advising on its Road Corridor Maintenance Contracts for the entire Auckland region
- Tetra Pak (New Zealand) - advising on the Edendale Milk Processing Plant constructed for Fonterra
- Contractor consortium - advising consortium on Department of Corrections Wiri Prison PPP Project
- Christchurch International Airport - $200 million+ international terminal expansion project
- Contractor consortium - advising consortium on Ministry of Education Schools PPP Project
- Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA) - advising on demolition strategy and associated contracts
- Developing standard tender and contract documentation based on local and international (eg NEC and FIDIC) standard forms for numerous organisations including, Auckland Council, Auckland Transport, Transpower, Christchurch City Council, South Auckland Health, Fletcher Construction, Kiwi Income Property Trust, Bupa and Bunnings
- Victoria Quarter Development - advising the developer on this $1 billion+ development project, involving over 20 mixed use commercial, retail, and residential buildings adjacent to the Auckland central business district
- Sea+City Projects - advising the developer of the multi-staged, multi-billion dollar redevelopment of an 18 ha area of industrially-zoned reclaimed central city waterfront land and wharves. This is the largest waterfront development project of its type ever undertaken in New Zealand. This project won the Australasian Legal Journal Commercial Property and Construction Deal of the Year Award
- Hawkins Construction - advising the head contractor on the $1 billion+ Kawarau Falls resort, a hotel and apartment development in Queenstown
- Tabua Investments - advising the developer on several hotel and retail developments including Radisson Denarau Beach Resort, Port Denarau, Golf Terrace Apartments, and Sheraton Denarau Villas
- Auckland City Council (and now Auckland Transport) - the $1 billion+ Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative (AMETI) project, the Road Maintenance Alliance, the Central Connector project, and the Britomart Transport Centre
- North Shore City Council (and now Auckland Transport) - $200 million+ Northern Busway project
- North Shore City Council - $100 million+ Rosedale waste-water treatment plant upgrade and ocean outfall project
- Christchurch City Council - PPP/DBFO contracts for biosolids treatment and disposal
- Christchurch City Council - advising on $85 million ocean outfall project (based on FIDIC)
- Project Manukau - the $500 million+ waste-water treatment plant at Manukau harbour (one of the largest projects of its type in the world)
- Metrowater - Clear Harbour Alliance contract for sewer and stormwater separation in central Auckland
- Transpower - $900 million HVDC Upgrade Project (based on FIDIC) including major works at Benmore in the South Island and Haywards in Wellington
- Meridian Energy - Manapouri Second Tailrace Tunnel
- Project experience encompassing hospitals (including Auckland A+ and Middlemore Hospitals), schools, courts, and sporting and recreational facilities (including Eden Park and the new Otago Stadium)
- Auckland City Council - solid waste collection and disposal contracts
- Transpower - $600 million North Island Grid Upgrade Project including 400kV North Island transmission line procured on a "competitive alliance" basis (the first competitive alliance in New Zealand)
- Department of Corrections - collaborative working arrangements (alliances) for the Regional Prisons Development project and alliancing documentation for the building of four major new prisons in New Zealand
- Christchurch City Council - alliance for the City Mall redevelopment project (including developing simplified procurement processes and contracts for a small scale project of this type)
- Auckland City Council - Freeflow Alliance established for the Grafton Gully to Central Motorway Junction project in central Auckland
- Solid Energy - project alliance with Henry Walker Eltin for the long-term development of mines on the Stockton plateau
- Vector Arena - the $80 million City Vector Arena (a 12,000-seat indoor stadium delivered on a PPP/BOOT basis)
- Rodney District Council - Penlink Toll Road project
- Auckland City Council and Manukau City Council - material recycling facility (undertaken on a PPP/BOOT basis)
- Auckland City Council - Britomart above-ground development
- Christchurch City Council - material recovery facility (DBFO) and organics processing facility (both on PPP/BOOT basis), collection and disposal contracts
- North Shore City Council - "Gasometer" site development in central Takapuna
- Ericsson Communications - 600km submarine fibre optic cable project for Telstra Clear (based on FIDIC)
Other Credentials
- Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand - Member
- INGENIUM - Member
- Society of Construction Law (New Zealand) - Member
- Society of Construction Law (United Kingdom) - Member
- Standards New Zealand - NZS3910 Committee Member
- Solicitor, England and Wales
