Mark was admitted as a solicitor in 2006 and is a member of the Law Society of NSW. He has extensive hands-on experience advising and advocating for clients in employment, work health and safety and commercial matters across a range of Commonwealth and state jurisdictions.
Mark’s focus as a lawyer is providing clients with exceptional service and pragmatic solutions to problems in a cost-effective manner. The solutions he devises are built on a solid framework of key components, including legal advice, strategies to deal with compliance obligations and advocacy for the protection of a client’s rights, interests and reputation.
Over the last decade Mark has been engaged by a number of firms and businesses, providing specialised employment and industrial law services to their respective clients. Prior to commencing work as a lawyer, he spent around four years as a legal academic delivering lecture and tutorial streams on topics as diverse as Business Law, Chinese Tax Law, Corporations Law, Japanese Trade Law and Torts.
Mark’s advice, compliance and advocacy work has included contracts and breach of contract matters; debt recovery (overpayment of wages/salaries); discrimination, workplace bullying and sexual harassment; employee misconduct and disciplinary matters; employment and enterprise agreement matters before the Federal Court and the Federal Magistrates Court; Fair Work legislation compliance investigations initiated by the Fair Work Ombudsman; and negotiating, drafting and seeking approval for enterprise agreements.
Mark’s extensive experience also includes general protections applications; industrial disputes before the Fair Work Commission and Industrial Relations Commission of NSW; interpreting and advising on awards, modern awards and enterprise agreements; major workplace change; misconduct matters before Racing NSW; performance management and improvement; redundancies and retrenchments; representational matters before the Fair Work Commission; termination of employment; total and permanent disablement matters before the Industrial Court of NSW; and unfair dismissal proceedings before the Fair Work Commission and Industrial Relations Commission of NSW.
Mark has engaged in the design and delivery of learning and development (L&D) programs on a diverse range of topics, including awards, enterprise agreements, consumer and competition law, contract law and employment contracts, Fair Work Ombudsman compliance and litigation, tort law, unfair dismissals and NSW work health and safety legislation. Mark’s experience in L&D has been greatly aided by his legal academic work.
Some interesting matters Mark has been involved in include acting for the Police Association of NSW in disciplinary matters involving NSW police officers, as provisioned for under the Police Act 1990 (NSW). His work involved representing NSW police officers in section 181D matters, which involved the summary removal of an officer from the force, and section 173 matters, which involved the Commissioner of Police taking action against officers for misconduct or unsatisfactory performance.
In Wilcox v Holcim (Australia) Pty Ltd [2016] FWC 2359, Mark acted for the employee and argued against the employer’s desire to be legally represented by raising section 596 points under the Fair Work Act 2009.
Mark acted in the matters SAS Trustee Corporation v Cameron [2012] NSWIRComm 20 (appeal) and Cameron v SAS Trustee Corporation [2011] NSWIRComm 69 (matter at first instance), which concerned a benefit for total and permanent invalidity before early retirement. We were successful at first instance. The SAS Trustee Corporation then appealed and lost before the Full Bench of the Industrial Court of NSW. On appeal the employee was found to have satisfied the statutory test for TPD payment and the superannuation provider’s case was dismissed. In addition, in the appeal Mark secured for the employee the maximum amount possible under the Suitors’ Fund Act 1951 regarding the costs the employee incurred in the failed appeal brought by the superannuation provider.
Mark also acted for CPSU members in CPSU v University of Western Sydney [2010] FMCA 246 (penalty hearing), CPSU v University of Western Sydney (No.2) [2009] FMCA 1207 and CPSU v University of Western Sydney [2009] FMCA 1176. The originating matter involved a breach by the university of its Workplace Agreement covering General Staff under the Workplace Relations Act 1996 (WR Act). The CPSU sought an imposition and recovery of penalties under section 719 of the WR Act. The university received a court-imposed penalty of $10,010 for breaching the Workplace Agreement and under section 841 of the WR Act, the penalty was paid to the CPSU.
Mark has strong interpersonal and teamwork skills, combined with attention to detail, case/project management experience and the ability to meet agreed deadlines and focus on the key forces in play. These attributes have enabled him to bring a large number of matters to a successful conclusion, through both negotiation and litigation.
When not working, Mark engages in a range of activities and sports, including swimming, chess, reading, walking, music and gardening. He also enjoys being involved in the local community on the south coast and the inner west of Sydney, as well as travelling across the country and around the world with his wife Margie, visiting family and friends.
Mark is also a keen sailor and has used his teamwork and communication skills to clock up some significant racing achievements as part of the crew on a ¼ ton fixed keel class of yacht, including three NSW State titles; and runner-up in two Australian National Championship events.
