Daniel Middleton

Practice Areas

Daniel specialises in construction, and has extensive experience drafting and negotiating contracts for the design, construction and procurement of major building, infrastructure and energy projects and the subsequent operation, maintenance, leasing and sale of those assets.

He is recognised as an experienced practitioner, who offers specific expertise in disputes and non-contentious matters relating to the construction of property developments and social infrastructure projects.

Career

Daniel has gained a wide range of specialist projects and construction law experience working in Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.

Daniel is a member of the Law Institute of Victoria and the Society of Construction Law of Australia. Since 2019, each year he has been nominated and selected as a Best Lawyer in Construction/Infrastructure Law and Real Property Law, and since 2022 in Litigation, by Best Lawyers Australia. In the Chambers and Partners 2021 Asia Pacific Edition, Daniel has been listed as a Recognised Practitioner in Construction, receiving a band 4 ranking in the 2023 awards for the sector.

Clients

Daniel’s clients include a mix of developers, owners, contractors, suppliers, tenants and public sector entities including government departments and universities.

Work Highlights

ISPT – Development of 31-35 Victoria Parade, Fitzroy

Acted for ISPT in its proposed development of 31-35 Victoria Parade, Fitzroy (being part of the St Vincent’s Hospital) for a 12,000sqm ‘on hospital campus’ medical office building.

The structure of the transaction saw ISPT enter into a development agreement with St Vincent’s for the construction of a 12 level mixed-use healthcare accommodation building on the land. The documentation was subject to St Vincent’s granting a 50 year ground lease to ISPT upon completion of the works and ISPT granting a 10 year sub-lease to St Vincent’s for approximately 5,000sqm of the completed building.

Daniel was involved with assisting ISPT with all aspects of the transaction including preliminary legal due diligence on the land, preparation and negotiation of the development agreement for the construction of the building, building contract and associated ancillary construction documentation, an agreement for ground lease and ground lease to ISPT and the preparation and negotiation of the agreement for sub-lease and sub-lease to St Vincent’s.

The transaction was particularly complex, with the parties having to ensure the documentation appropriately considered and dealt with:

• the heritage and archaeological significance of the site;

• the ongoing operation and use of the broader St Vincent’s Hospital complex;

• security and protections to be afforded to ISPT given that it did not acquire an interest in the freehold of the land but would be committing to undertake significant capital expenditure on the site; and

• priority of works and co-ordination between the parties to ensure that both ISPT’s redevelopment of the land and St Vincent’s redevelopment of adjoining land (which had commenced prior to the transaction) could both be completed without impacting the development program of the other.

Football Victoria

Assisted with the construction and negotiation of a long-term ground lease at La Trobe University, Bundoora, which is earmarked to be the ‘Home of the Matildas’, the Australian Women’s football team. Advised on the construction contracts for the facility as well as Football Victoria's Strategic Relationship Agreement with La Trobe University, which establishes a framework for FV and the University to deepen their long term partnership ($115m).

Cbus Property

Advised in relation to Cbus Property's $1bn office tower development located at 435 Bourke Street. The development will comprise 59,000m2 of office space across 49 storeys and will provide views that overlook the Yarra River, MCG and Port Phillip Bay.

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Australia, New Zealand

Education