Paul O'Halloran | Partner and Head of Office
Dentons Australia

Paul O'Halloran is a Partner in employment law at Dentons Australia and Accredited Specialist in Workplace Relations. He has a strong focus on resolving high risk disputes in the workplace for employers. This frequently involves employee misconduct, union disputation, governance and workplace culture, industrial action, vulnerable stakeholders, media interest and reputational risk. His employment law solutions extend across a range of employment, class action and industrial relations matters covering legal issues arising at all phases of the employment relationship (pre-employment, during employment and post-employment). He has particular expertise in the education sector, advising independent non-government schools, governing bodies and religious orders and denominations in contemporary employment and education law issues involving staff, students and parents. Examples of his experience include:

• Advising on complex and sensitive workplace investigations into institutional misconduct
• Advising on reportable conduct obligations and child protection compliance in schools
• Identifying and investigating fraudulent conduct in the workplace
• Defending employment law class actions involving casual employees
• Devising dismissal and exit strategies for high risk employee departures
• Negotiating and implementing enterprise bargaining agreements for schools
• Preventing and resolving industrial action and bargaining disputes
• Defending and resolving unfair dismissal, discrimination, adverse action and bullying claims
• Management of long term ill and injured workers
• Advising on discrimination issues relating to employees and students

Paul writes and presents regularly on employment, IR and school law topics at conferences, in the media and occassionally on TV.