With Christmas almost upon us and 2019 rapidly drawing to a close, I wanted to take the time to pause to look back at a few of the high points of the year and forward to what will be a busy 2020.

Healthy connections

One of the biggest developments of 2019 was our growing involvement in the health and medical sector. Thanks to this expansion, we received a number of invitations to speak at conferences, workshops and industry events this year. I’m really proud of the work we have been doing for both individual medical professionals and practices in helping them grow their businesses effectively and strategically.

I’m equally proud of our strong connections with like-minded and trusted professional advisors and service providers serving the medical industry who share the same interest in ensuring their clients do well and have the right support.

A knowledgeable community

This year we launched our new website and our new focus on education and knowledge, including the distribution of regular articles by our team who are all committed to sharing their expertise in their key areas to our valued clients and connections.

This renewed focus to keep legal matters simply strategic has seen us published in key industry publications, asked to speak at conferences and events and regularly called on by industry bodies to provide advice in our key areas.

I am also proud to say our Hillhouse community endeavours have increased, including supporting the Variety Bash, the Bridge to Brisbane, Wesley Mission Red Bag Appeal and the Aussie Kids Charity Gala, which raised several hundred thousand dollars for local families in need.

We continued our support of the Women’s Legal Service Qld via the annual 2019 Legal Profession Breakfast – something that is very close to the heart of the Hillhouse team – as well as Harmony Day, Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea, RSPCA Cupcake Day and RUOK Day.

We regularly hold community events and morning teas to help local groups and charities and have increased our professional development support of Hillhouse team members to ensure they are at the top of their games.

The past year saw the arrival of new team members Alethea Cridland, Stephanie Howes and Stephanie Walker, who have all found their places in the team and become valued members.

From banking to the bush

During 2019 we increased our work interstate with more businesses and private clients in NSW, South Australia and Victoria, while also increasing our scope in regional Queensland. Likewise, our hotels and accommodation team have been part of some iconic and interesting deals throughout Australia and continue to show the value of having specialists in this unique sector. 

While property development appears to have been challenging in 2019 due to factors such as the Banking Royal Commission, the squeeze on credit flow and the federal election, we’re seeing this area start to pick up, and the residential conveyancing market has been very strong in the last few months with a lot transactions and activity. Likewise, work in Mergers and Acquisitions has been busy this year and we expect this to increase in 2020.

As a result of our ongoing educational programs, we’ve seen a growing number of clients addressing their estate planning. We put that down to a growing awareness of the value of having it done professionally and people putting more value on protecting their estates for their loved ones. There is also a growing understanding that people can save their family significant amounts at tax time if this is done properly.

Our educational approach in the Employment and Industrial Relations fields has also seen an increase in work as we continue to advise and support employers, both large and small. This approach has been really powerful in helping clients navigate the ever-changing legislation in this space to ensure that the employer and employee are both protected and looked after.

Our friends in the bush have unfortunately been doing it tough with the drought, but we’ve seen ongoing activity in our agribusiness space and we’re looking forward to continuing our visits to regional parts to help our valued clients. We are also working with them and helping them with their plans for 2020 and beyond.

Next year

So that’s 2019 in a nutshell. A year with more highs than lows and plenty of promise for 2020.

For now, I want to wish all our clients, friends and hard-working Hillhouse team members a very merry Christmas. Enjoy whatever time you have off and I look forward to seeing you all again in 2020.