Our Legal Team of Lawyers

Robert Lindsay

Robert is a proud Novocastrian who has lived and worked in Newcastle all his life.

Robert has been a principal of Mullane & Lindsay since 1977. His long experience over more than 30 years means he knows the “nuts and bolts” and practical operation of most property and commercial transactions, from the ground up.

Robert leads our Commercial & Property group . He is actively involved in all aspects of commercial and residential leasing and property transactions. He also advises on local government law, bankruptcy and company liquidation matters, and estate planning issues.

Robert has expertise in various forms of civil litigation including professional indemnity, public liability and general insurance claims, actions under the Family Provisions Act (contesting wills) and commercial disputes in particular. Robert’s major clients include multi-national general and indemnity insurers, major regional corporations engaged in a range of activities such as property development and manufacturing; company liquidators, and a wide cross-section of business and professional organisations in the Hunter, Central Coast and Sydney areas.

Robert is a member of the Australian Insurance Law Association, the Australian Insurance Institute and of the Commercial Law Association of Australia. Robert was the secretary of Newcastle Law Society for many years.

Robert is the partner responsible for Mullane & Lindsay’s branch office at Tea Gardens.

You can contact Robert at robert.lindsay@mullanelindsay.com.au

Mark Sullivan

Mark is the leader of our Family and Relationships law group and a NSW Law Society Accredited Specialist in Family law.

He has practised in this area for over 25 years, including in parenting cases, child support disputes and many complex commercial and property disputes arising from relationship difficulties. As a result he has developed particular expertise in analysing and deconstructing various business arrangements, such as trusts and corporate groups.

Mark also has a thorough understanding of superannuation issues both in relationships and generally. His abilities in this field have been recognised by his appointment as a trustee of the Nationwide Superannuation Fund, which manages around $400M of investments. Mark also advises senior executives and professionals in connection with those business structures, both in relation to actual or anticipated family law disputes, and as a general advisor.

The laws relating to property settlements, superannuation and same-sex relationships overlap, and Mark enjoys being able to advise clients on how to avoid pitfalls in the constantly changing arena of Relationships law.

Mark is a member of the Hunter Valley Family Law Practitioners Association; regularly attends the Family Court Judges Liason group and is a member of the Regional Committee Family Law Section, Law Council of Australia. He is also a member of the Greater Newcastle Gateways Project and of the Community Advisory Committee of the Family Relationships Centre.

Mark graduated from Macquarie University in 1980 with a BA/LLB and was admitted as a solicitor in 1981. He has been a principal of Mullane & Lindsay since 1985 and takes great pride in the firm’s ability to provide practical and cost effective advice to its client.

Mullane & Lindsay is also one of the few Hunter firms that practise in defamation law and Mark has acted for numerous well-known local identities in litigation in this field.

You can contact Mark at mark.sullivan@mullanelindsay.com.au

Tony Cavanagh

Tony is the leader of our Dispute Resolution & Litigation group and practices almost exclusively in civil litigation.

He has been practicing law since 1984. He became a principal of the firm in 1993 and has been a NSW Law Society Accredited Specialist in personal injury law since 1994.

Mullane & Lindsay has developed a special expertise in the areas of professional indemnity and general insurance claims, and Tony is our liason partner for insurer clients. His clients include a number of general and indemnity insurers such as LawCover Insurance Pty Limited, the professional indemnity insurer of solicitors in NSW and the ACT.

Tony also advises and acts for workers (including professionals and senior executives) and employers in termination of employment claims and on industrial and workplace issues generally. Tony was for many years a Conjoint Lecturer in Industrial Law at the Faculty of Law at The University of Newcastle, and continues to lecture final year law students on an occasional basis.

Tony is a member of the Australian Insurance Institute, the Australian Insurance Law Association, the Australian Lawyers Alliance and the Industrial Relations Society of NSW. He has been both Secretary and Treasurer of Newcastle Law Society, a member of the Criminal Law committee of the Law Society of NSW and Chair of the NSW Young Lawyers Criminal Law committee.

You can contact Tony at tony.cavanagh@mullanelindsay.com.au

Vivien Carty

Vivien is a senior member of our Family & Relationships law group and is an Accredited Specialist in Family Law.

Vivien was admitted as a Solicitor in N.S.W. in 1983 and in Victoria in 1984. Over the past 24 years Vivien has practised extensively in Family Law and has a detailed and sound knowledge of all aspects of the law relating to relationship breakdown including parenting, property, financial and superannuation issues, child support and spouse maintenance.

Vivien became an Accredited Specialist in Family Law in 2005, having satisfied the requirement of years of experience in the area and having also passed the comprehensive oral and written examinations to attain accreditation.Vivien has many years of experience in Family Dispute Resolution including negotiating parenting plans and binding financial agreements.

She is an experienced advocate in the Local, Family and Federal Magistrates Courts and has an excellent knowledge of the practice and procedure in each Court.Vivien has also practised extensively in the Children’s Court Care & Protection Jurisdiction.

Vivien is a member of the Law Society of NSW, the Newcastle Law Society, and the Hunter Valley Family Law Practitioners Association.

You can contact Vivien at vivien.carty@mullanelindsay.com.au

Michael McGrath

Michael joined Mullane & Lindsay in 2002 and is a senior member of our Commercial & Property group.

Michael’s work focuses on commercial and property issues including residential and commercial property transactions; business sales and purchases; commercial and retail leasing; wills and estates and other general commercial and property related transactions.

Michael has developed a particular expertise in commercial leasing, and in the GST implications of various commercial and property transactions. He works closely with the other professional advisors of our commercial clients, to provide a fast and efficient service that delivers a business as well as a legal outcome.

Michael has an excellent understanding of practical business issues, having worked for 8 years in the retail sector prior to completing a Bachelor of Economics and then a Bachelor of Law (LLB) and Diploma of Legal Practice. This included completion of the highly acclaimed legal professional program at the University of Newcastle Law School. Michael’s prior experience in the ‘real’ world of business helps him provide practical and relevant advice to our clients.

Michael is a member of both the NSW and Newcastle Law Societies and is the solicitor responsible for our Gwandalan office located at 2/61 Gamban Road Gwandalan.

You can contact Michael at michael.mcgrath@mullanelindsay.com.au

Kristy Davis

Kristy Davis is a senior member of our Dispute Resolution & Litigation group and has been with Mullane & Lindsay since 2004.

Kristy has also developed a practice in administrative law, and her clients include the University of Newcastle, and other organisations requiring advice or representation on issues such as Freedom of Information requests and disputes; harassment or discrimination allegations; and Equal Opportunity issues.

Kristy also manages a number of professional indemnity and general litigation matters. Kristy is a graduate of the very demanding practical legal training course at Newcastle University Law School, where she was awarded an Honours degree for her academic achievements. Kristy also holds a Bachelor of Business degree, with a major in Industrial Relations.

Kristy is a member of the Law Society of New South Wales, the Newcastle Law Society and the Australian Insurance Law Association.

You can contact Kristy at kristy.davis@mullanelindsay.com.au

Ashleigh John

Ashleigh joined our firm in 2007 and is a member of our Family & Relationships law group.

Ashleigh is an active member of the Greater Newcastle Family Pathways Network, which is an interagency of family service providers in the Newcastle and Hunter region.

Ashleigh has strong ties to Newcastle having completed her Law degree and practical legal training at the University of Newcastle. She is a former Youth Mayor of the city, a position she held for seven years. Ashleigh also holds a Bachelor of Communication, with a major in Public Relations, from the University of Newcastle.

Ashleigh is a member of the Law Society of New South Wales, the Newcastle Law Society, the Hunter Valley Family Law Practitioners Association and the Hunter Junior Chamber.  She is admitted to the Supreme Court of New South Wales and is entered on the High Court register of practitioners and entitled to appear in all federal courts.

You can contact Ashleigh at ashleigh.john@mullanelindsay.com.au