Lynn Hawes - Construction Legal | Specialists In Building And Construction Law

Lynn Hawes

SENIOR ASSOCIATE

Lynn is a specialist front-end contracts lawyer with a pragmatic, commercially focused approach to risk allocation and contract strategy.

Lynn draws on legal and business experience across Australia, England and South Africa, having worked on large-scale infrastructure, commercial construction, premium residential and strata projects – including both remedial works and new builds. Most recently a front-end construction and strata lawyer at Swaab in Sydney, she previously founded and led a commercial and construction boutique firm in South Africa. Lynn is dual-qualified in Australia and South Africa and is an accredited mediator with the London School of Mediation.

Lynn specialises in contract strategy, negotiation, template suites, procurement support and front-end contract administration. She prepares and reviews lump sum, cost plus, design and construct, ECI and bespoke contracts across the Australian Standards suite (AS4000, AS4905, AS4122), and advises on alignment with the Security of Payment Act and the Design and Building Practitioners Act. She acts for developers, head contractors, subcontractors, owners corporations, strata managers, local councils and consultants — from large enterprises through to SMEs.

Click here to view Lynn’s profile and recent project work.

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More Reviews

Strong and reliable legal advice

The Construction Legal team provides us with practical and succinct legal advice relating to a complex property disputes. The point of difference with Construction Legal is that not only do they provide strong and reliable legal advice, it is supported by strategic outcomes informed by a deep understanding of how our business works. As we continue our journey to build our Australian footprint, we look forward to working further with Construction Legal.

Diverse commercial and legal expertise

We have worked with Jessica and the team at Construction Legal for over three years on property and development matters. Jessica and her team have diverse commercial and legal expertise which allows them to navigate through complex issues quickly to find commercially focused solutions. We are pleased with the favourable results that the team at Construction Legal have consistently achieved for our company.

Invaluable

Jessica has been retained as Deicorp’s construction law expert for over five years and she has been invaluable since then. As well as acting on several court and tribunal proceedings, Jessica provides me and my team at Deicorp with strategic and legal advice on a regular basis. I continue to place my trust in Jessica because she is a strategic thinker. She has an excellent understanding of my company and foresees risks before anyone else. I feel that I can talk to Jessica honestly and frankly about legal issues as and when they arise and always feel supported by her advice.

Jessica and the team at Construction Legal cannot be recommended enough.

Excellent -

Excellent

The iCIRT star-rating service is the outcome of extensive industry collaboration, which has involved Equifax leading and working closely with key partners such as Construction Legal to bring improved transparency and trust to the building industry. The team at Construction Legal has been with us on the important journey to work with the NSW Government to materially change the way residential development and construction is delivered in NSW.
We have been impressed with Construction Legal’s ability to deliver valuable training to our team, which has lifted the quality and expertise within Equifax. The team is a passionate group of highly skilled lawyers who are well-versed in all aspects of construction law that always have a close eye on the commerciality of the task at hand. Equifax has been fortunate to have them as a legal partner in relation to the iCIRT rating program, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration with them in the future.

Best possible outcome

We have been using the team at Construction Legal for 7 years now for all our legal matters ranging from employment, negotiations, security of payment claims and Adjudication. In fact, for every security of payment claim that we have taken to adjudication, Construction Legal has ensured we obtained the best possible outcome.

The lawyers at Construction Legal are always accessible and more often than note we could be working four of them at one time across various projects. We can call on all our lawyers at Construction Legal at any time to bounce ideas around over the phone or request urgent advice which is great for me juggling managing the business and being time poor. Construction Legal is a valuable part of our business and their dedication and reliability should be applauded.

Supportive top level legal advice

The team at Construction Legal has supported Growthbuilt on numerous projects and contracts. They have supported us with top level legal advice, which is always informed by a strategic, practical and commercial overview. I value their ability to confidently guide us through detailed and complex legal and commercial issues. The turnaround time and follow through is second to none and we would happily recommend Construction Legal to builders, contractors and developers that require sound commercial legal advice on large projects.

Very impressive

We are very pleased to have Construction Legal as our commercial and legal partner. Their knowledge of how to manage risk through the project lifecycle has been very impressive. The expertise and professionalism demonstrated by the Construction Legal team in relation to negotiation of development, project finance joint venture arrangements and construction contracts has been outstanding. And their attention to detail and ability to always keep the commercial objective front of mind gives us the confidence that our transactions are in safe hands.

Collaborative and supportive

The Construction Legal team have demonstrated a high level of commitment throughout every project they have handled for us. They promptly addressed our inquiries and provided regular updates on the progress of each case, showcasing their ability to multitask effectively while ensuring consistency and quality. Their expertise has made navigating the legal landscape a seamless experience, fostering a collaborative and supportive environment. With their exceptional skills and unwavering dedication, we have complete confidence in their ability to overcome any challenge and deliver outstanding results.

Consistently exceeding expectations

Construction Legal has been an invaluable support and consistently exceeding expectations. With meticulous attention to detail and unwavering dedication, they have become a trusted asset to our team. Jessica and her team have received numerous compliments for their high-quality service, establishing themselves as esteemed experts within our network.