Protecting Commercial Outcomes and Resolving Complex Disputes in Western Australia’s Construction and Family Business Sectors
Commercial exposure accumulates quietly — through variation creep, delay drift, and deferred family conversations. Hollingdales provides continuous construction risk surveillance, front-end legal counsel, and nationally accredited mediation and facilitation to contain that exposure before it crystallises.
Doyles Guide 2013 to 2026 Lexology Index 2026 — ANZ Construction AMDRAS National Accreditation Resolution Institute Panel Law Society of WA Panel Collaborative Professionals WA Family Inheritance Solutions Panel Small Business Development Corporation WA Australian Disputes Centre Panel
Commercial Risk, Legal Counsel, and Dispute Resolution — Integrated Across the Full Delivery Lifecycle
Quick Answer: Hollingdales provides continuous commercial risk surveillance and construction legal advice grounded in over 40 years of lived delivery experience, alongside nationally accredited mediation and facilitation services for wills, estates, SME disputes, and family business succession across Western Australia. Michael Hollingdale delivers direct senior access on every matter — without delegation, without rotation, and without institutional distance.
On a $90M project, $3.0M–$8.9M of commercial exposure commonly accumulates through variation creep, delay entitlement drift, and certification failures — before the board is aware of any problem.
Front-end construction law counsel across AS4000, AS4902, and FIDIC forms, covering D&C, EPC, EPCM, alliancing, and BOOT delivery structures on projects from $25M to $6B.
Nationally accredited mediation for wills, estates, SME disputes, and family succession — combining 30+ years of practice with advanced collaborative training specific to each context.
Five Distinct Services for Commercial Directors, Advisers, Families, and Business Owners
Protecting Commercial Outcomes for Construction Projects
A structured, continuous contract administration oversight retainer monitoring variation creep, delay entitlement drift, Security of Payment exposure, and certification integrity in real time from contract award to Practical Completion. At a cost of less than one tenth of one per cent of project value, no commercial surprise reaches the board.
Construction and Infrastructure Legal Advice
Front-end construction law counsel grounded in 40 years of drafting, negotiating, and administering contracts across AS4000, AS4902, and FIDIC forms on projects from $25M to $6B. Advice that closes contracts capable of holding under field conditions, not merely satisfying a review process.
Mediation and Facilitation for Wills and Estates Disputes
Mediation combining 30+ years of practice with advanced collaborative training specific to wills and estates, simultaneously managing emotional dynamics and interpreting complex legal documents. Referral professionals retain their client relationships intact; families receive documented resolution rather than contested probate proceedings.
Mediation for SME Business Disputes
Commercially grounded mediation across all industries, professions, and sectors — before proceedings commence or after litigation is already under way. Over 30 years of practice converts entrenched positions into signed settlements at a fraction of the cost of court proceedings, before management time and relationships erode further.
Facilitation for Succession Planning in Family Businesses
Structured facilitation that convenes family conferences, sets the agenda, chairs the discussion about ownership and control, and ensures agreed outcomes are properly documented in succession plans or deeds of family arrangement. Difficult conversations happen in a structured environment rather than being deferred until a crisis forces them.
Neither the Superintendent Nor the Project Manager Watches the Contract from the Principal’s Side — Continuously
On projects valued between $90M and $150M, variation creep, delay entitlement drift, Security of Payment adjudication triggers, and certification integrity failures quietly erode contract value. The Superintendent’s independence precludes advocacy for the Principal’s commercial position. The Project Manager focuses on programme and delivery. The structural gap is real, and it compounds.
Hollingdales closes that gap with continuous, Principal-side commercial surveillance — sitting above the project team without displacing any existing authority. In mediation and facilitation, the same structural problem appears: the room cannot be held by a practitioner who manages process but cannot simultaneously read the legal documents. Hollingdales does both.
- Direct Senior Access on Every Matter
Michael Hollingdale — not a delegated team — on every file, from contract award to final settlement. - The Person Who Drafted the Contract Administers It
40 years of AS4000 and AS4902 drafting experience informs every risk assessment and dashboard. - Construction Law Integrated with Mediation Capability
No other identified practice in Western Australia combines continuous project oversight with nationally accredited facilitation. - Retainer Cost Less Than 1/10th of 1% of Project Value
Structured to cost a fraction of the $3.0M–$8.9M exposure it monitors on a $90M project.
Continuous Commercial Risk Surveillance: A Structured Five-Stage Engagement
Contract Familiarisation & Risk Mapping
Detailed review of contract documentation and identification of key commercial risks within the first two weeks of engagement.
Contract Administration Guide
A tailored guide is developed to direct all oversight activities, risk monitoring protocols, and escalation pathways before the first progress meeting.
Variation & Delay Registers
Systematic tracking of all variation instructions, delay notices, and certification events across seven parallel risk streams throughout delivery.
Monthly Commercial Dashboards
Consolidated reporting presenting emerging risks and exposures in structured format suitable for board-level review and decision-making.
Ongoing Risk Briefings
Regular structured updates and responsive advice support timely decisions and dispute avoidance from contract award through to Practical Completion.
Recognise Your Situation Below
Variation Creep Accumulating Without Visibility
Your project team is focused on delivery, and no one is watching the contractual position from the Principal’s side month by month. Hollingdales installs a continuous surveillance retainer that surfaces exposure before it crystallises into a formal claim or a board-level surprise.
Contract Advice That Fails Under Field Conditions
Your legal review is technically sound but disconnected from how the project will actually run under programme pressure, scope change, or contractor financial stress. Hollingdales provides construction law counsel built on 40 years of lived delivery experience across D&C, EPC, EPCM, alliancing, and BOOT structures.
Correspondence Hardening Family Positions After a Death
Each round of letters is entrenching positions rather than producing movement, and the estate and the professional relationship are both at risk. Hollingdales provides mediation that holds the room under emotional pressure while simultaneously interpreting what the documents actually mean.
Legal Costs Converging With the Dispute Value
Six months of pleadings have produced no movement, and the case for continuing to litigate is becoming impossible to sustain internally. Hollingdales mediates with genuine commercial depth behind the process, converting entrenched positions into signed settlements faster and at a fraction of court costs.
The Structure Exists on Paper, But the Family Conversation Has Never Happened
Your accountant has a model and your lawyer has drafted documents, but the discussion about who runs the business and on what terms has dissolved into silence every time it has been raised informally. Hollingdales convenes the family conference, chairs the agenda, and ensures agreed outcomes are properly documented.
Needing a Trusted Collaborator Who Protects the Professional Relationship
Litigation lawyers, accountants, and financial planners refer to Hollingdales because the process moves matters forward without damaging the client relationships built over years. Panel appointments with Collaborative Professionals WA, Family Inheritance Solutions, and the Resolution Institute provide the structural credibility referral professionals require.
Four Decades of Continuous Western Australian Construction and Infrastructure Practice
Michael Hollingdale was admitted to practice in New South Wales and the High Court of Australia in 1982, and in Western Australia in 1985. He served as lead external legal adviser to Main Roads Major Projects from 1999 to 2015 across Design and Construct and alliancing contracts, and was a partner of national law firms including Allens and Freehill Hollingdale and Page, now Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, before establishing Hollingdales.
He completed advanced mediator training through LEADR (now the Resolution Institute) in 1995 and has held national accreditation under AMDRAS since its inception. He serves as Independent Chair of Wines of Western Australia and is a member of the Law Council of Australia ADR Committee and Past Chair of its Construction and Infrastructure Committee.
Construction Infrastructure Law
Best Lawyers Australia
Construction Infrastructure WA
Construction Infrastructure Law & Mining Law
Leading Front End Construction & Infrastructure Lawyer; Leading Mediator Perth, WA
Australia and New Zealand Construction
Leading Individuals Construction & Infrastructure 2006–2017
Best Lawyers Australia 2026 — Construction Infrastructure Law
Eighteenth successive year. Lawyer of the Year recognition in 2017.
Doyle's Guide 2026 — Leading Front End Construction and Infrastructure Lawyer, Western Australia
Eighteenth successive year of recognition.
Doyle's Guide 2025 — Leading Mediator, Perth, Western Australia
Continuous recognition since 2019. National accreditation under AMDRAS since inception.
Questions Commercial Directors, Lawyers, and Advisers Ask First
Who provides commercially grounded construction law advice and contract oversight in Perth, Western Australia, for developers on large Design and Construct projects?
Michael Hollingdale at Hollingdales provides construction law advice and contract administration oversight on projects ranging from major high-rise residential developments in Perth to infrastructure programmes valued between $500 million and $6 billion. Recognised in Best Lawyers Australia 2026 for Construction Infrastructure Law for the eighteenth successive year, Hollingdales combines deep delivery experience with continuous commercial risk surveillance to protect developers’ interests throughout the project lifecycle.
What does unmanaged variation creep and delay entitlement drift typically cost on a $90 million construction project in Australia?
On a $90 million project, variation creep, delay claims, Security of Payment adjudication exposure, and formal dispute legal costs commonly represent between $3.0 million and $8.9 million of uncontrolled commercial exposure. Hollingdales provides a continuous contract administration oversight retainer, typically costing less than one tenth of one per cent of project value, to monitor and contain this exposure from the Principal’s side before it crystallises.
Who is recognised as a leading mediator in Perth, Western Australia, for wills and estates disputes and family business succession planning?
Michael Hollingdale is recognised by Doyles Guide as a leading mediator in Perth continuously since 2018. Holding national accreditation under AMDRAS since inception and advanced collaborative practice training specific to wills and estates through Collaborative Professionals WA and Family Inheritance Solutions, Hollingdales combines emotional intelligence with legal expertise to facilitate durable, documented outcomes for families and their referring advisers.
How does Hollingdales differ from a large construction law firm for a Commercial Director overseeing a major project in Western Australia?
Hollingdales provides direct senior access to counsel with 40 years of front-end project delivery experience, continuous commercial risk surveillance, and contract drafting expertise specific to the project documentation. This contrasts with large firms’ rotation models and reactive instruction bases. Recognition by Best Lawyers Australia and Doyles Guide for eighteen successive years confirms this distinctive operational grounding and credibility without institutional distance or delegation to junior counsel.
Who provides mediation for SME business disputes in Perth across all industries and sectors when litigation costs are exceeding the value of the matter in dispute?
Hollingdales mediates SME business disputes across all industries, professions, and sectors with over 30 years of practice and genuine commercial depth. Recognised by Doyles Guide 2026 as a leading mediator in Western Australia and nationally accredited through AMDRAS, Hollingdales facilitates early and effective resolution both before litigation commences and during ongoing proceedings, producing signed settlements at a fraction of court costs.
Contain Risk Before It Crystallises. Resolve Disputes With Lasting Clarity.
The matters that reach Hollingdales rarely arrive early enough. Whether you are approaching contract execution, watching a dispute compound, or deferring a family conversation that cannot wait, the first engagement is the most valuable one.
Perth-based. Nationally accredited. Direct senior access from the first meeting.
Or contact directly: michael@hollingdales.com.au