Gordon Williams
|Partner

A leading employment lawyer, Gordon Williams provides strategic and litigious advice about employment, human resources and industrial relations issues in diverse workplaces and in the context of the wider corporate environment.

Gordon advises his major national and international clients on employment and HR change management issues generally, and as a result of major corporate transactions such as mergers and outsourcing, particularly in the private equity field. He also has market leading expertise in employee benefit arrangements and related corporate governance issues.

Building on his previous UK practice, Gordon also has strong 'project management' skills in multi-jurisdictional employment matters, including international assignments and secondments.

Gordon’s practice spans multiple sectors including financial services, IT, manufacturing, pharmaceutical and telecommunications for such leading and long-standing clients as Australian Catholic University, AMEX, BT, Challenger, iSOFT, Pfizer and Thales.

Recognised for his expertise in the International Who's Who of Management Labour and Employment Lawyers and in Australia by Best Lawyers, Gordon is also a sought-after trainer at industry seminars and client workshops.

Expertise

Professional Background

Publications & Media

Areas of expertise include:

Employment Advice

Gordon advises major Australian and international clients on all aspects of employment law spanning advisory, contentious and non-contentious matters. Known for his pragmatic and commercial approach, Gordon has a strong strategic focus on matters arising out of restructuring, senior executive recruitment and separation, and protection of business issues. This goes hand-in-hand with his broad experience in executive, consultant and director contracts, incentive and benefit arrangements, governance issues and workplace disputes.
Over the years, Gordon has gained exceptional experience and profile for his leading work on domestic and international corporate transactions. He has extensive dealings in both the public M&A and private equity field including sales of business, share sales, IPOs, and outsourcings.
Gordon excels at understanding the key corporate and commercial drivers of a transaction and their employment impacts for parties on both sides of the deal. This insight ensures his clients gain solutions-focused advice in diverse and complex commercial transactions. Gordon’s London experience has also proved invaluable for his many multi-jurisdictional transactions. In particular, it enables him to better communicate the nuances of the European and Australian employment systems to clients.
Equal Employment Opportunity, Discrimination, Harassment and Diversity

Gordon has considerable experience advising on discrimination, harassment and bullying issues including workplace training, investigations, risk mitigation strategies and defence of claims – including sensitive matters involving senior executives. Clients appreciate his sound judgement, particularly when appropriate early intervention can avoid more serious issues manifesting themselves down the track.
Executive Remuneration, Regulation and Compliance

A market leading specialist in executive employment, Gordon is at the forefront of this increasingly complex and regulated area of the law. He advises many of the firm's leading clients, particularly those listed on the ASX. His advice is sought by clients seeking structured executive remuneration, recruitment and retention strategies as well as sound advice on sensitive executive separations, particularly those triggering complex retirement benefit provisions under Australia's corporations law.
Occupational Health and Safety

Gordon brings a proactive approach to his management of client occupational health and safety matters. He provides comprehensive advice in this area, including the obligations of employers, employees, directors, officers and managers, contractors and sub-contractors. Gordon regularly assists with the development of policies, manuals and procedures, and their proper implementation in training.
Training

Gordon is a sought-after presenter and trainer on diverse workplace issues. He frequently presents at internal and external seminars and conducts training, both with clients and in conjunction with external training organisations. Gordon regularly presents the annual Australian Employment Law workshop in London with training provider JSB, as well as GuideME workshops covering such topics as Employment Law 101 and employment issues in corporate transactions.