Specialist expertise

AGS has specialist expertise in constitutional and public law, statutory interpretation and the development, implementation and administration of legislation.

AGS lawyers are the acknowledged experts in turning Commonwealth policy into legislation. Our team of over 80 lawyers in the Office of General Counsel has a deep whole-of-government understanding of the Commonwealth's legal framework and responsibilities. We have over 100 years of precedential corporate memory. We have been directly involved in the development of almost all significant Commonwealth legislation.

We will partner with your agency to guide you through the end-to-end process of legislative development. We have excellent relationships with and access to key decision-makers across government and can provide strategic policy and political insights where necessary. We have a deep understanding of the workings of the parliamentary and Cabinet processes and a longstanding and productive working relationship with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel. We offer you a unique 360-degree visibility of government.

All our practitioners have immense experience in complex statutory interpretation and the robust analytical skills to communicate clearly to all stakeholders across government. We also have substantial experience in drafting legislative instruments. Our experience in advising on the development, drafting, interpretation and management of the passage of legislation means we can identify potential issues in a timely manner and give practical strategic advice around managing them.

We can identify legal risk from a whole-of-government perspective, including providing authoritative constitutional advice where necessary. We have unparalleled experience in litigating constitutional issues.

Partnering with our clients helps us understand exactly what you want to achieve and the best way of achieving it. Lawyers from the Office of General Counsel may be outposted to clients to achieve specific project requirements. While we understand government from a global perspective, we also understand our clients' business at a granular level.

Our unrivalled experience in both developing and interpreting legislation means our advice is always informed by our most current and recent lived experience across the whole of government.