Mills Oakley Lawyers

Expertise
Mark is an accredited specialist in property law who enjoys the challenge of helping
his clients develop innovative, effective and efficient solutions to highly complex property
issues.

Over the past 20 years his practice has increasingly focussed on private and government transactional, leasing and development work.  In more recent years, he has developed particular experience representing public sector agencies whose land holdings and dealings in land are specially regulated.  He understands the commercial outcomes his private and government clients want to achieve and the regulatory, administrative and political frameworks within which they have to operate.

Since 2006, Mark has served as a member of the Property Law Committee of the Law Society of New South Wales.

Strengths
Mark’s experience in many complex transactional and development projects enables him to take a ‘whole of project’ view from the outset, enabling him to assist his clients in articulating and implementing their development and commercial aims effectively.

Mark is also an excellent project manager who ensures his team always meets tight deadlines and reporting requirements.  Both clients and staff comment on Mark’s accessibility and willingness to share his knowledge and experience.

Experience
Acting for Redbank Project Pty Limited on the acquisition and site structuring of the Redbank 1 Power Station in the Hunter Valley, NSW, including:

• dealing with the numerous mining tenures affecting the site;
• acquiring Crown Land leases to cover infrastructure passing over Crown Land;
• negotiating the terms of easements and other rights to secure the installation and operation of the coal fuel beneficiation plant, fuel supply conveyor, ash slurry disposal, water intake and disposal from the Hunter River, connection to the electricity grid.

Acting for New South Wales rail entities in connection with:

• disposal of surplus land assets, including securing the continued efficient and safe operation of rail systems through restrictive covenants, easements and other interests;
• leasing and licensing of rail assets including industrial properties and basalt quarries.

Acting for developer Winten Property Group on the acquisition, leasing, development and sale of many of its property projects over the past 10 years including:

• long-term leasing and sale of the commercial and retail components of the “Forum” at St Leonards station, including strata subdivision of the retail and commercial components of the buildings, preparation of strata by-laws and restrictive covenants to ensure the continuation of Winten’s vision for the Forum complex and its integration with City Rail’s station as a whole and the sale of component buildings and retail and commercial strata lots;
• advising on the company’s new commercial strata development in Miller Street, Pyrmont, including site subdivision, stratum acquisition of land for railway corridor, preparation of by-laws for the strata subdivision of the resulting building, off-the-plan sales of commercial suites and retail lots, leasing of the completed commercial and retail lots;

• negotiation and entry into numerous call options and contracts for the staged acquisition of a strategic new development site;
• documenting and transacting the sale of a commercial development in the Rocks held on long‑term leasehold including negotiating a hotly disputed ground rent review with the state authority lessor.

Acting for a private development consortium on the consolidation, luxury residential development and subdivision of an environmentally sensitive site on Sydney’s northern beaches, including negotiation of complex access easements, development and use restrictions with the adjoining owner and transacting the sales of the completed homes.

Acting for developer/investor Charter Hall Holdings on:

• the sale to AMP Henderson Global Investors of the former BP Banksmeadow fuel terminal and negotiating/documenting ongoing development rights, plus ongoing leasing of the site;
• the acquisition, subdivision and development of “Space 207” on Pacific Highway St Leonards, including the proposed subdivision of the resulting building(s) by means of Building Management Statement mechanisms, leasing of the completed buildings and eventual sale of the complex;
• acquisition of inner-city Telstra exchange for residential redevelopment and its later disposal;
• the negotiation and documenting of a joint venture arrangement and the acquisition of an industrial site in Nunawading, Victoria, in conjunction with the Pivot Group of Western Australia.

Representing NSW Landcom on:

• all aspects of its Victoria Park project (complex urban renewal project of a 22 ha "brownfields" site at Zetland) involving government/private enterprise joint ventures and staged sale and private development of residential and commercial precincts;
• documenting its development relationship for its innovative smart housing project “Forest Glade” at Parklea, including advising and implementing structure for an affordable housing scheme;
• documenting development agreement with DOCS for a south-western greenfields residential development.

Lead legal adviser on the PricewaterhouseCoopers team that advised the NSW Government (Department of Lands) on the reform of the system of alienation and leasing of Crown land in New South Wales.

Legal project team leader on the delivery of the revision of the Department of Lands’ handbook for the administration of Crown Reserves in New South Wales.

Acting on the site acquisition leasing for Hutchison Telecommunications’ “Orange” telephone network and its later 3G telephone and data network, entailing the co-ordinated negotiation of approximately 700 separate site leases and other site tenures.  This project involved:

• the sitting of a legal project team in the client’s project office;
• co-ordination and supervision of legal work on hundreds of lease/licence transactions under a demanding timeframe;
• detailed and accurate progress reporting to ensure compliance with stringent project milestones, including the development of project status reporting tools in the absence of any systems developed by the client.

Professional Qualifications

• B.Juris, LL.B (University of NSW)
• Accredited Specialist in Property Law (Law Society of NSW)
• Notary Public (NSW)