Con is the Co-Head of the MinterEllison M&A/Capital Markets Team and specialises in Public and Private M&A and Corporate Advisory.
Con has significant experience working on M&A transactions across many sectors, with a focus on working for strategic clients – in particular, those listed on the ASX.

Con has a unique understanding of the key challenges facing Boards and C-Suite of ASX listed companies in these transactions, including with respect to managing legal and reputational risks.

Con regularly advises ASX listed companies and their directors on a broad range of corporate advisory matters (including Annual General meetings, continuous disclosure, insider trading and directors’ duties).

Con was this year reappointed for another 3 year term in his role as a member of the Australian Takeovers Panel, where he joins a small and illustrious group of respected Public M&A practitioners on the Panel. He is ranked as a leading M&A lawyer in Chambers, Best Lawyers, IFLR1000 and Legal 500 and is a member of the Law Council of Australia’s Corporation Committee. In 2025, Con was a finalist in the Lawyers Weekly Australian M&A Partner of the Year Award and is frequently nominated and shortlisted for various Dealmaker of the Year awards, including as a finalist in the 2024 Lawyers Weekly Australian M&A Partner of the Year Awards and as a 2024 winner in the Australasian Law Awards M&A Dealmaker of the Year Awards.

Chambers and Partners client testimonial state:

"Con is great to work with on deals because he’s easy to talk to and sound on key issues and always has a commercial lens…..He knows what is market, and what's important in a deal and what's not."

Career highlights

• Metrics: Advising the leading alternative financier on numerous transformational transactions repositioning Metrics as Australia's leading private credit player, including with the South Korean National Pension Service.
• J-Power: Advising the leading Japanese energy utility on its binding dual scheme and takeover bid to acquire Australian renewables developer, ASX-listed Genex Power for $381M, with an enterprise value of over $1B. This was the winner of the Renewable Acquisition of the Year, APAC & Energy Transition Acquisition of the Year, APAC – IJ Investor Awards 2024.
• Viterra: Advising Bunge (NYSE) on the Australian legal aspects of its $34B mega-merger with Viterra.
• Liberty Hall Capital Partners: Advised on its $350B acquisition of 100% of UK-based Ferra Holdings Limited.
• Cromwell Property: Advised on its response to the $529M proportional takeover bid by Singapore based ARA Asset Management.
• oOh!media: Advised on the acquisition by oOh!media (ASX-listed) on its $570M acquisition of the Adshel outdoor media business from HT&E (ASX-listed) and associated $300M capital raising.
• TEN: Advised on the sale of distressed free-to-air TV network TEN (ASX-listed) to CBS (NYSE-listed).
• CIMIC: Advised CIMIC its successful $525M unsolicited takeover bid for UGL Limited (ASX-listed).
• CIMIC: Advised CIMIC on its $175M unsolicited takeover bid for Macmahon Holdings Limited.
• Urbanest: Advised on the A$2B acquisition sale to Scape Australia, the largest Real Estate M&A transaction recorded in Australia in 2019.
• Hitachi: Advised Hitachi on its successful A$976M all cash off-market takeover offer for Bradken Limited (ASX listed).

• MinterEllison advises J-Power on takeover of Genex Power Limited
  

  Leading Australian law firm MinterEllison has advised Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER), one of Japan's largest electricity utility companies on its $381 million acquisition of 100% of the shares in ASX-listed Genex Power Limited (Genex) which implies an enterprise value of $1,035 million, by way of a dual track scheme of arrangement and concurrent off-market takeover offer.

• MinterEllison brings in new Private Equity practice leader in Sydney
  

  MinterEllison is pleased to announce the appointment of Lee Horan as a Partner in its M&A/Capital Markets practice in Sydney, significantly enhancing the firm’s national offering and deepening its expertise in private capital transactions

• Australian Life Sciences and Biotech - Key themes and trends
  The Australian life sciences and biotech sector is likely to continue its resurgence over the next twelve months, with global trends driving strong M&A activity in life sciences and biotech M&A. We have identified 6 key themes for activity in this sector.
• Australian food and agribusiness 2017 key themes
  

  2017 is a year of opportunity and challenge for the Australian food and agribusiness sector. We anticipate an uplift in food and agribusiness M&A activity, and have identified 6 key themes that are likely to play out in the remainder of 2017.

• Unmasking financial services' IT costs in M&A
  

  As the financial services sector faces a wave of M&A activity, organisations need to be aware of the hidden costs that technology can present.

• MinterEllison advises Bally's on its strategic investment in The Star
  

  MinterEllison advised Bally's Corporation (Bally's), a global casino-entertainment company, on its successful investment of $266 million in The Star Entertainment Group Limited (The Star), an ASX-listed, ing Australian entertainment and gaming company, operating casino and resort properties in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast. The investment will give Bally's a substantial shareholding of 38% in The Star.

• MinterEllison's M&A century
  

  In a record-breaking year for the firm, MinterEllison worked on over 100 M&A deals in 2021 - ranking second in deal volume in MergerMarket's League Tables.

• MinterEllison scoops two awards at the 2022 IFLR Asia-Pacific Awards
  

  MinterEllison has won the Restructuring Deal of the Year for work on Boart Longyear, and the prestigious National Law Firm of the Year Award for Australia.

• MinterEllison advises Airlie Funds Management on sale to Magellan Financial Group
  

  MinterEllison has advised the shareholders of Airlie Funds Management on the all-scrip acquisition by ASX-listed Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX:MFG).

• MinterEllison advises retailer Steinhoff Asia Pacific on $300m refinance deal
  

  MinterEllison is very pleased to have advised Steinhoff Asia Pacific Group Holdings Pty Ltd (Steinhoff Asia Pacific) as it secured its funding requirements for the next 12 months with a $300m refinance provided by its existing syndicate of six local and international banks.

• Restructuring and sale of Network Ten
  

  MinterEllison was the sole legal adviser to the receivers and managers appointed to ASX-listed Australian media group, Network Ten, on all aspects of its widely publicised receivership in late 2017.

• 10 insights into public mergers and acquisitions
  

  Against the backdrop of a global pandemic and heightened market volatility, the last two and half years have delivered a record M&A boom in terms of deal volumes and values. In our Directions in public M&A report, we explore 10 insights into deal activity, sectors to watch and the outlook for M&A going forward.

   

• MinterEllison continues Private Capital momentum with senior appointments
  

  MinterEllison has continued to build depth in its Private Capital capability following the arrival of Lee Horan as Head of the firm’s Private Capital practice with the recent hires of leveraged finance specialists Victor Salman and Kieran McMonagle as Special Counsels in Sydney.