Andrew Peterson leaves Russell McVeagh to commence practice at the bar
Competition guru Andrew Peterson has left his post at Russell McVeagh to practise independently as a barrister specialising in competition and regulatory law.
He began his new practice earlier this month.
Peterson initially joined Russell McVeagh almost 25 years ago before he left to pursue career paths in London and New York - followed by seven year stint at Minter Ellison Rudd Watts’ Auckland office where he headed the competition team. He then returned as a partner and head of Russell McVeagh's competition team almost eight years ago.
Although he refers to his old colleagues as a “terrific bunch of partners and staff” Peterson says that he was prompted to move by the “desire to undertake more competition advocacy work.”
“When I was going through the decision making process, one of the things that I was most excited about was having the flexibility and scope to spend more time on legal research and analysis which, for many lawyers, is the aspect that most attracted them to the profession in the first place,” he says.
Peterson admits that there were challenges setting up the infrastructure at his new practice and that he misses the ‘people’ side of being at a firm. “It is now very much up to me to seek out a support network to help with basic queries. I miss having the opportunity to bounce around ideas with others that I used to do at the firm.”
His new Chambers, called St Paul’s Chambers, is based in Auckland, New Zealand. He says of his new firm, “I hope that I will have the opportunity to work with other senior barristers and Queen's Counsel where I can learn a lot of new skills.”
Peterson is featured in The International Who’s Who of Competition Lawyers & Economists.