Among the firm’s hires is partner Warren Jiear (pictured), who will head the new insolvency group and brings with him six lawyers, including special counsel Celestine Frost and senior associate Mario Esera. Jiear is a highly-experienced restructuring and insolvency lawyer whose clients include liquidators, administrators, receivers, creditors and trustees. 

Greg Whyte, the head of Piper Alderman’s Brisbane office, said: “Warren’s team will add strength to Piper Alderman's existing credit management, reconstruction and insolvency team.  I’m excited by this opportunity to develop our capacity in this sector.”

Also joining the firm as a consultant is Ewan Robertson. Robertson is a corporate lawyer and will lead the corporate team focused on energy & resources. He brings with him four lawyers, including senior associate Josh Steele. Robertson has significant experience in the energy & resources, real estate and financial services sectors, with expertise across transactional and project work, mergers and acquisitions and joint ventures.

Whyte said: “The expansion of our energy & resources offering in Brisbane complements our leading resources practice nationally.”

Lawyers Weekly previously reported that Hynes Lawyers was undertaking a restructure, which included reducing its lawyer numbers from 35 to 20 and adopting a more casual dress code, and would be known as Hynes Legal from today (20 May).