U.S.-trained M&A/PE and VC lawyer (ex V20) now based in Australia where I’ve built a cross-border practice focused on startups, growth-stage companies, and funds doing business between the U.S. and Australia. For those who’ve referred Aussie work before, what’s been your biggest challenge I.e responsiveness, commerciality, pricing?

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Idk about Australia specifically bc I’ve never referred there but I have referred ECVC work to a lot of other local counsel (I’m a partner at one of the big SV firms). Usually the issue isn’t pricing—it’s responsiveness and practicality. Especially for ECVC, attorneys need to be able to take a risk based approach to giving guidance, and a lot of local counsel are extremely risk averse and formalistic in how they work. It’s just not a good fit for VCs and startups

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Referred to or from Australia?

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Referred to Australia mainly. The context is I am gathering insights so that I can further refine my practice and develop a niche. At the moment, U.S. law firms are a decent source of referrals, but I’d like to do better. However, I’m not entirely sure what sets me apart from my competitors in this space (apart from being U.S trained at a top PE firm / lower cost than the top tiers / technically reliable). I’m trying to better understand where I fit when firms make decisions to retain Aus counsel!

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100% agree P1

I’ve noticed the same about some local counsel here. My approach (both in the U.S and Aus) has always been to offer quick and sharp responsiveness and a commercial edge / practical risk assessment. At the end of the day the nature of the asset is inherently risky, and everyone knows what they are getting into.

Big issue I see time and again is lawyers representing that they can do VC deals without having any actual VC specialisation/experience and risk appetite. It’s a highly commercial area that requires confidence navigating ambiguity, and not everyone is cut out for that kind of risk-based advising.

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