McMahon Clarke

What McMahon Clarke does

McMahon Clarke was a Brisbane, Queensland-based commercial law firm that advised clients across funds management, corporate, real estate and construction, finance, and litigation matters. The firm operated with approximately 30 partners, lawyers, and other professionals, including named partners Langton Clarke, Emma Donaghue, Kristy Dorney, Mark Lyons, Sean McMahon, Selina Nutley, and Elliott Stumm. As a private Australian professional services firm, it generated revenue through fee-for-service legal advice, with client segments implied to include fund managers, property and construction participants, lenders/borrowers, and corporate counterparties.

The firm's business model was the standard mid-tier law firm model: partners originate and lead matters, supported by associates and non-legal staff, with revenue earned on hourly/fee-based billing tied to matter complexity and partner specialization. No technology platform, proprietary product, or AI tooling is mentioned in the source material; the practice was a people-and-relationships business.

On 1 November 2023, McMahon Clarke merged into national Australian law firm Hall & Wilcox, ending its independent operations. Post-merger, the legacy practice's partners and clients are subsumed inside Hall & Wilcox, and McMahon Clarke no longer exists as a standalone reporting entity.

Name

McMahon Clarke

Legal name

McMahon Clarke Lawyers

Website

https://mcmahonclarke.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

McMahon Clarke was a Brisbane-based commercial law firm of approximately 30 partners, lawyers, and other professionals advising clients in funds management, corporate, real estate and construction, finance, and litigation, before merging into Hall & Wilcox in November 2023.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Offices of Lawyers (54111), All Other Legal Services (541199)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate & Commercial Law (BPAHAAAA)

Keywords

• Commercial legal services
• Funds management law
• Corporate legal advisory
• Real estate law
• Finance and litigation law

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Core offering

McMahon Clarke Lawyers was a Brisbane-based Australian commercial law firm providing legal services across funds management, corporate, real estate and construction, finance, and litigation. Its offerings included advisory work on transactions, regulatory compliance, and dispute resolution for Australian business clients. The firm ceased independent operations on 1 November 2023 when it merged into Hall & Wilcox.

Product overview

McMahon Clarke was a law firm that has merged with Hall & Wilcox from 1 November 2023. As a legal services firm, it provided client services across funds management, corporate law, real estate and construction, finance, and litigation practices. Following the merger, all legal services are now delivered through Hall & Wilcox with the former McMahon Clarke team of 30 partners, lawyers and professionals joining the combined firm.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Funds Management Legal Services Legal services for funds management including corporate structuring, regulatory compliance, and transactional matters for investment funds, delivered to Australian fund managers and investors.
• Corporate Legal Services Corporate law advisory services covering mergers and acquisitions, governance, and commercial transactions for Australian corporate clients.
• Real Estate and Construction Legal Services Legal services for real estate transactions and construction projects including property development, leasing, and construction contracts.
• Finance Legal Services Finance law advisory covering lending transactions, debt restructuring, and financial regulatory matters for financial institutions and corporate borrowers.
• Litigation Legal Services Dispute resolution and litigation services for commercial and funds management-related matters, delivered to Australian corporate and financial clients.

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Hall & WilcoxcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2023McMahon Clarke Lawyers merged into Hall & Wilcox on 1 November 2023. The entire team of 30 partners, lawyers and professionals joined Hall & Wilcox, bringing expertise in funds management, corporate law, real estate, construction, finance, and litigation. Key partners including Langton Clarke, Emma Donaghue, Kristy Dorney, Mark Lyons, Sean McMahon, Selina Nutley, and Elliott Stumm joined the firm.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• McCullough Robertson: McCullough Robertson is a leading Brisbane-based Australian law firm of comparable size and regional focus. It offers similar corporate, real estate, finance, and dispute resolution services to mid-market clients in Queensland, making it a direct competency and geographic peer.
• Lander & Rogers: Lander & Rogers is a national Australian law firm comparable in size to McMahon Clarke, with overlapping corporate, real estate, and dispute resolution practices serving mid-market and institutional clients.
• Carter Newell Lawyers: Carter Newell is a Brisbane-based law firm with a similar mid-market practice profile, including property, commercial, and dispute resolution work. It is directly comparable in size and Queensland market focus.
• Barry.Nilsson: Barry.Nilsson is a national Australian law firm of similar size and mid-market positioning, with strong practices in commercial, property, insurance, and family law. It is comparable in service breadth and target client profile.
• HopgoodGanim Lawyers: HopgoodGanim is a Brisbane-headquartered full-service law firm of comparable scale. It competes directly with McMahon Clarke across corporate, property, finance, and litigation matters for Queensland clients.

Broad incumbents

• King & Wood Mallesons: King & Wood Mallesons is a global elite law firm with market-leading Australian practices in funds management, corporate/M&A, real estate, and finance. It is a broad incumbent competing for the same Queensland and national mandates McMahon Clarke historically targeted.
• MinterEllison: MinterEllison is one of Australia's largest full-service law firms with deep practices in funds management, corporate, real estate, finance, and litigation. It overlaps with McMahon Clarke's service offerings but operates at meaningfully larger scale across geographies.
• Clayton Utz: Clayton Utz is a leading Australian national law firm with strong practices in corporate, real estate, banking and finance, and disputes. It competes with the former McMahon Clarke firm for larger corporate and institutional mandates in Queensland.
• Hall & Wilcox: Hall & Wilcox is the acquiring firm that absorbed McMahon Clarke in November 2023. It is a national Australian law firm with overlapping practice areas in corporate, real estate, finance, and funds management, providing direct comparability on service mix and target mid-market client base.
• Norton Rose Fulbright Australia: Norton Rose Fulbright's Australian practice offers global-depth corporate, finance, real estate, and dispute resolution services. It is comparable to McMahon Clarke's practice mix but operates at international scale with significantly more resources.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/McMahonClarke
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mcmahon-clarke-legal

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about McMahon Clarke