Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) has added a trio of projects and construction lawyers in Sydney from Clyde & Co. 

Glen Warwick has returned to the firm as a partner, while fellow NRF alumnus David McElveney will serve as a senior consultant and Chloe Blackwell has joined as a special counsel. The trio’s arrival replenishes NRF’s projects and construction bench in Sydney following the departure of Emanuel Confos, who led the firm’s Australia construction and engineering team, alongside fellow partner Harriet Oldmeadow and their team for Baker McKenzie last month. 

The move sees Warwick begin his third stint at NRF after 10 years at Clydes, where he was head of projects and construction in Australia. He advises clients primarily in the infrastructure, energy and resources sectors; his practice spans the project life cycle and he has extensive experience drafting and negotiating complex construction contracts in Australia, the Middle East and Asia.

Warwick also acts as a dispute resolution advisor on claims management, mediation, expert determination, litigation and International Chamber of Commerce international arbitrations. He recently acted on a number of construction disputes and mining arbitrations in Western Australia, having been based in Perth at Clydes. 

Meantime McElveney has returned to NRF after nearly 16 years at Clydes, having previously led the Sydney construction and engineering team at Deacons, which NRF absorbed in 2010 to launch in Australia. He brings more than 30 years’ experience as a construction law and international arbitration advisor, primarily in Australia and the Middle East. At Clydes he served on the APAC board, was head of the Asia-Pacific projects and construction group and also head of the group in Australia.

Blackwell regularly acts on behalf of contractors in the infrastructure, energy and resources sectors in both contentious and non-contentious matters. She worked at Clydes for nearly 10 years, most recently as a senior associate, and before that held various legal and commercial roles at Leighton Contractors (now CIMIC Group).

“It is tremendous to see senior projects and construction lawyers of Glen, David and Chloe’s calibre join the firm,” said Alison Deitz, NRF’s chief executive partner in Australia. “Glen made a big impression on our partners and clients as he rose through the ranks at Norton Rose Fulbright. We maintained a close relationship with him over the intervening years and watched as he established himself as a respected advisor to leading infrastructure and construction companies. 

“David is likewise a popular Norton Rose Fulbright alumnus and pillar of the projects and construction industry. He has led construction teams in Australia and the Middle East and advised on dozens of high profile transactions and disputes. The wealth of experience they and Chloe bring for our clients and partnership will significantly bolster our projects and construction offering.”

In Sydney the trio will work alongside prominent leading construction and infrastructure lawyers including Kevin Arkwright and Alex Whiteside. Their respective practices dovetail nicely with the firm’s wider Australia construction team, which is noted by Chambers for its representation of contractors as well as government entities in major transport projects and its focus on EPC matters in the renewables sector as well as complex disputes. Key clients include CWP Renewables, AirTrunk and AMP Capital. 

A spokesperson for Clydes commented: “We can confirm that Glen Warwick has left Clyde & Co. We thank him for his time at the firm and wish him well for the next step in his career.”

NRF also significantly boosted its energy offering in the US last summer when it hired a group of seven renewable projects-focused real estate lawyers in Chicago from a local boutique. The firm had first opened in Chicago earlier in the year with a team of 11 lawyers from rivals including K&L Gates and DLA Piper as part of a broader growth push in the Midwest that also saw it add a large team in Minneapolis from trial boutique Blackwell Burke.