Minter Ellison

Duncan specialises in environment and planning law and acts for major developers and government sector clients. He has advised on the requirements for environmental and planning approvals for numerous major developments, from major regional shopping centres, to cogeneration power plants and to major remediation and redevelopment sites.

Duncan is experienced in negotiating with major regulators including the NSW Department of Planning and the Environment Protection Authority in relation to the structuring of relevant approvals and the imposition of license and approval conditions and transfers.

Duncan also has extensive experience in acting for and advising clients on the planning and environmental approval aspects of the acquisition of a wide range of assets and property portfolios. He has regularly undertaken or supervised due diligence investigations for purchasers of significant assets and property portfolios.

Advised NSW Government in relation to a major restructure of the State's non-metropolitan rail system which included an investment of A$800 million+ in rail infrastructure by the Commonwealth Government. The arrangements effectively incorporated 3000kms of NSW interstate and Hunter Valley mainline railway track under the same operation and management as the interstate standard gauge mainline railway track. We also subsequently advised on commercial arrangements in relation to the take up by ARTC of the Metropolitan Freight Network and the Southern Sydney Freight Line.

Acted for Transport for NSW on the Franchising Sydney Ferries project. This follows on from acting for the NSW Department of Transport & Infrastructure in the Sydney Ferries Market Review project in 2010. This was a high profile and politically sensitive project to implement the recommendations of the Walker report to franchise the iconic operation of the ferries on Sydney harbour. It involved the drafting of service contracts and the conduct of a tender process, extensive due diligence, evaluation and negotiation with three private sector consortia and, ultimately, completion of the transaction with the preferred tenderer and transition from Sydney ferries to the new private sector operator.