After graduating from Sydney University with a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws, John Simpson served his articles and was admitted to practice in 1974.
In the 30 plus years of his practice, John has developed broad skills in the Commercial arena and for most of those years he has acted for a multinational pharmaceutical company and its Australian subsidiary, and their animal health affiliates. John also acts for a range of other companies in industries including animal health, cereal manufacture and distribution, outdoor advertising, mobile screen rental, clothing manufacturing and on-line travel services.
On a day to day basis, John works closely with his clients on all aspects of running their businesses including advising on:
- Business acquisitions and divestitures (whether by way of purchase/sale of shares, assets or goodwill) and related due diligence and negotiation and preparation of associated heads of agreement and/or contracts including any necessary applications for FIRB and/or ACCC clearance.
- Negotiation and preparation of intellectual property, confidential disclosure agreements and licence research and development and commercialisation agreements.
- Negotiation and preparation of co-marketing, distribution and sales agency agreements for a wide range of clients and products.
- Avoidance or minimisation of exposure to breach of restrictive trade practice provisions of the Trade Practices Act.
- Marketing materials to guard against contravention of the Trade Practices Act prohibitions against misleading and deceptive conduct.
- All employment issues including reviewing and advising on employment contracts, policies and procedures, advising in relation to alleged breaches of contract, unfair dismissal, and/or discrimination claims.
- What is the appropriate operating structure eg company, partnership, sole trader, discretionary trust, unit trust, service trust; and what agreements (eg shareholder agreements, buy/sell agreements, put and call options) are necessary to support those arrangements.
Recent significant achievements for John’s clients have included:
- Formation of an unincorporated joint venture between the Australian subsidiary of a multinational pharmaceutical company (Pharmaco) and an Australian medical research commercialisation company (Researchco) and subsequent acquisition by Pharmaco of the interest of Researchco in the joint venture.
- Negotiation and drafting of research and development and resulting technology commercialisation agreements.
- Acting for a patentee defending patent revocation suits.
As well as being both a busy lawyer and the Managing Partner of the firm, John is married with two teenage sons and still finds time to maintain his sporting interests on the golf course and watching cricket and rugby.
In John’s words “Going forward we will …" (meaning everything is a continual process of development and improvement).
