Gary Thomas, Consultant
Gary has been practising in Western Australia for more than 35 years and specialises in commercial property development, leasing and business transactions generally.
Gary joined McWilliams Davis in 2018. During his career he practised as a partner in three well regarded Australian law firms. He holds the degrees of BA, B.Juris, LLB (Hons), LLM.
He has particular expertise and experience in the following areas:
- sale and purchase of commercial properties, including shopping centres and office buildings;
- property development projects, including site acquisition, planning approvals, environmental issues, and land use generally;
- preparation of master leases and advising on all aspects of commercial and retail leasing, including advice relating to the Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Amendments Act;
- property mortgages and securities, including PPSA issues;
- sale and purchase of businesses;
- transaction duty;
- government procurement;
- commercial contracts generally.
Gary has provided advice to a wide range of clients including banks, insurance companies, property trusts, private developers, property investors and Government instrumentalities.
He has handled a variety of property and commercial transactions. These include:
- Acting for a major State government authority, including the preparation of leases for a variety of purposes and the provision of advice on property related issues affecting crown land under the control of that authority. Gary has also advised the authority on its procurement of rail cars for the urban passenger network, including preparing key documents for the tender process and negotiating the final terms and conditions of relevant commercial contracts for supply and maintenance obligations for the benefit of the State. Gary has also advised in relation to infrastructure and access issues affecting the authority.
- Acting for a large privately controlled group with several large motor vehicle dealerships and extensive property portfolio. Gary has been responsible for general advice and the preparation of documentation for a variety of commercial situations.
- Acting for a large Western Australian property developer, including handling lease negotiations and related property development advice for the construction of new shopping centres. This includes the preparation of master lease documentation and the negotiation of lease documents with major tenants such as Woolworths and Coles.
- Providing advice to the private owner of a branded supermarket chain in the Perth metropolitan area, including the acquisition of new sites, lease negotiations and various other dealings with land.
- Advising private clients in relation to the preparation of lease documentation, compliance issues under the retail shops legislation and general leasing matters in relation to shopping centres and commercial and office buildings in Perth.
Gary has been a seminar leader at the University of Western Australia and has presented lectures and seminar papers on leasing and property related topics for the University as well as the Law Society and legal education providers.
He is convener of the Law Society’s Property Law committee and is a member of the Society’s General Conditions for the Sale of Land committee.
He has been a contributing editor (WA) for the LexisNexis online Practical Guidance legal service in relation to Property Law.
Gary has been recognised as a recommended Western Australian lawyer in the areas of property and real estate.
Phone: 08 9422 8977
Email: gt@mcwilliamsdavis.com.au