Peter Sise

Clayton Utz Special Counsel , Melbourne Work T +61 3 9286 6367 cell [email protected] https://www.claytonutz.com

Peter is an experienced commercial litigator with particular knowledge of trade practices law, insolvency and regulatory investigations. He believes litigation is about resolving conflicts so that a business can remain focused on what matters: its business.

This requires understanding the objectives, histories and personalities of all stakeholders and that a win does not always come from a court's judgment.

Peter believes that in a world of continuously changing legal regulation, it's essential to have an understanding of where laws originated and where they are headed – a belief that has led him to write regularly for peer-reviewed journals and work on both the "Harper Review" of Competition Law and Policy and the Australian Consumer Law Review. Peter is also an editor of Wolters Kluwer CCH's trade practices commentary and a member of the editorial committee for the publication, In-house Counsel.

Qualifications

Bachelor of Laws (Hons), University of Melbourne
Advanced Certificate in Insolvency, ARITA and the Queensland University of Technology

Admitted to practice

Victoria (2007)
High Court of Australia (2007)

More details

Peter has has published numerous peer-reviewed articles including:

"Insurance Contracts and Unfair Contract Terms: A Two-Tier System” (2020) 31 Insurance Law Journal 42
"Can a big business avail itself of the unfair contract term provisions in the Australian Consumer Law?" (2018) 26(4) Australian Journal of Competition and Consumer Law 276
"The extension of unfair contract term provisions to small business contracts: A lack of clarity?" (2016) 23 Competition and Consumer Law Journal 217
"Is there a gap in the unfair contract term provisions between a 'consumer contract' and a 'small business contract'?" (2017) 25(1) Australian Journal of Competition and Consumer Law 14
"Now you're secured. Now you're not: How do the unfair preference provisions apply to debts that change from secured to unsecured?" (2015) 27(3) Australian Insolvency Journal 36
"How does s 588FA apply to the granting of a security interest over an unsecured debt?" (2015) 23 Insolvency Law Journal 59
"Is a charitable donation by an insolvent company an uncommercial transaction under s 588FB of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)?" (2015) 33 Companies and Securities Law Journal 416
“The unfair contract term provisions: What’s transparency got to do with it?” (2017) 17(1) QUT Law Review 160
“An Alternative Approach to the Treatment of Penalties and Fines in Bankruptcy” (2016) 16(2) QUT Law Review 82
"Expanding the net: the unfair contract term provisions will now extend to small business contracts" (2016) 90(11) Law Institute Journal 44
"No finders keepers: When privileged documents are discovered by mistake" (2014) 88(4) Law Institute Journal 34
“Interviewing with confidence” (2013) 87 (8) Law Institute Journal 58
"Discovery at a price" (2010) 84 (1&2) Law Institute Journal 38

Expertise

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Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Myer: Peter is acting for Myer in defending a shareholder class action in the Federal Court involving alleged contraventions of continuous disclosure obligations under the Corporations Act and misleading or deceptive conduct regarding the financial performance of Myer in FY15. To date, this is the only shareholder class action that has proceeded to judgment in Australia.

Myer: Peter acted for Myer in the Supreme Court of Victoria in a multi-million dollar dispute concerning its Chadstone store and is continuing to act in the Court of Appeal.

Tatts Group: Peter acted for Tatts Group in a $A540.5 million dispute with the State of Victoria relating to its gaming machine business which progressed all the way to the High Court.

Tatts Group: Peter acted in a multi-million dollar dispute for Tatts Group in the Supreme Court of Victoria and Court of Appeal in relation to a levy imposed by the State of Victoria on Tatts Group's gaming machine business.

Tatts Group: Peter acted for a subsidiary of Tatts Group in a dispute in the Supreme Court of Victoria concerning the installation and maintenance of gaming machines across Victoria.

Tatts Group: Peter acted for the lotteries business of Tatts Group in a proceeding in the Supreme Court of Victoria concerning a lost lottery ticket worth $3.3 million.

TechnipFMC: Peter acted for multinational engineering business, TechnipFMC, in a Supreme Court of Victoria proceeding relating to an offshore gas drilling and processing project.

Symbion Health: Peter acted for Symbion Health in a dispute in the Supreme Court of Queensland concerning a national training program for its Mayne Logistics Armaguard business.

Regis Aged Care: Peter acted for Regis in a proceeding in the Supreme Court of Victoria concerning the sale of an aged care facility.

Marke v Victoria Police: Peter acted in the Victorian Court of Appeal proceeding of Marke v Victoria Police, which was one of the most significant Freedom of Information cases in Victorian history.

See Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Class actions

Myer shareholder class action: Peter acted for Myer in defending the first shareholder class action to proceed to judgment in Australia. The case, in the Federal Court, involved alleged contraventions of continuous disclosure obligations under the Corporations Act and misleading or deceptive conduct regarding the financial performance of Myer in FY15. It was held that notwithstanding certain contraventions, no loss had been established. The case was widely reported on and described to be "as landmark as it gets".

See Class actions

Competition

Peter acted for a financial institution which was investigated by the European Commission concerning alleged cartel conduct.

Peter assisted an ASX-listed company in relation to potential proceedings by the ACCC regarding a proposed acquisition.

Peter assisted an ASX-listed company with an ACCC investigation concerning alleged resale price maintenance.

Peter advised a major company in relation to an investigation by the Fire Services Levy Monitor in relation to alleged "price exploitation".

Peter worked as a secondee at the Business Council of Australia dealing with the first extensive review of competition law and policy in 20 years (known as the "Harper Review").

See Competition

White Collar Crime and Investigations

Peter acted for two directors who were alleged to have fraudulently manipulated the "earn out" arrangements for the sale of a business.

Peter acted for a major ASX-listed company that was the victim of procurement fraud by former senior employees.

Peter acted for a major ASX-listed company that was the victim of an internet scam.

Peter acted for ASX-listed companies under investigation for alleged breaches of continuous disclosure obligations and insider trading.

See White Collar Crime and Investigations

Restructuring and Insolvency

Westpac Banking Corporation: Peter advised Westpac on its financing and security arrangements in respect of the Sargon group, including representing Westpac in a complex Federal Court proceeding which determined the entitlements of various creditors.

Commonwealth Bank: Peter is acting for the Commonwealth Bank in a long-running Supreme Court proceeding concerning the administration and receivership of a clothing wholesale business.

Schemes of arrangement: Peter has worked on numerous schemes of arrangement including schemes concerning AMP, AXA, Toll, Oxiana, Zinifex, Skilled Group, AWB and Smorgon Steel.

General advice: Peter has advised on matters such as unfair preferences, duties of receivers, enforceability of security interests and voidable transactions by bankrupt individuals.

See Restructuring and Insolvency

Knowledge

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