About Us

History

Meridian Lawyers, formerly known as Guild Lawyers, was established in April 2004.

Our practice has grown to the size where it now employs more than 30 lawyers working in the areas of insurance, health, commercial and employment law.

We attribute our growth and success to the confidence clients have in us delivering the highest level of advice, that is pragmatic, timely and cost effective.

Our lawyers act for leading local and overseas insurers, some of Australia’s most prominent companies and organisations, a large number of professional member Associations as well as literally hundreds of individual health care practitioners and medium and small businesses.

Meridian Lawyers operates as a fully integrated corporate legal practice across its offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Newcastle.

Why Meridian?

Why did we choose the name Meridian? Our new name is significant for embodying qualities that reflect who we are.

• EXCELLENCE: We aim to always provide the highest standard of service within our areas of expertise.

• VISION: We will work together with our clients to navigate the most direct path to the planned outcome.

• BALANCE: We recognise our strength is the combination of our expertise and our personality; our passion, our care and our determination to achieve the best possible outcome for our clients. Of course, it’s not just about changing our name.

The one thing that will never change is our focus on finding better solutions and achieving outstanding results for our clients.

Our vision

The vision of Meridian Lawyers is to be the pre-eminent legal practice in our areas of practice and the employer of choice.

We will achieve this vision by working with our clients to deliver quality legal advice and practical solutions for managing risks and achieving planned outcomes.

How we are different

Claiming to be different and being different are two very different things. Meridian Lawyers backs up its claim with actions. We genuinely set ourselves apart, not just in terms of what we do, but also how we do it.

Meridian Lawyers offers a dedicated team of insurance, health, commercial and employment lawyers. That means we provide an incredibly focused service. We have the industry knowledge to provide premium quality legal advice that is both practical and strategic as well as cost effective. It is for these reasons that Meridian Lawyers enjoys a reputation of excellence and has become a leading firm in its areas of practice.

But more than simply being lawyers, we are people who are passionate about legal practice and helping others. Our lawyers are approachable, down to earth and caring. What you experience dealing with us you simply will not find in legal corridors elsewhere.

We bring a collaborative style to our work to plan and then achieve these planned outcomes. We work closely with our clients, understanding their needs from the inside out – not the other way around. We work with our clients to keep them informed, to plan and then achieve optimum outcomes.

Above all, our lawyers are focused on achieving the best possible results for clients and their businesses. We recognise that if we perform well, caring for our clients and stakeholders as if they were our own, we can help your business grow and help you and us grow together.

Corporate responsibility

Corporate responsibility can sometimes be what a business chooses to define it as. Meridian Lawyers, however, treats its corporate responsibility and commitment to sustainable practices seriously, and adopts the definition developed by the International Organization for Standardization as part of its work on the new Guidance Standard on Social Responsibility, ISO 26000, which says:

“Social responsibility is the responsibility of an organisation for the impacts of its decisions and activities on society and the environment, through transparent and ethical behaviour that

• Contributes to sustainable development, including the health and the welfare of society;
  

• Takes into account the expectations of stakeholders;
  

• Is in compliance with applicable law and consistent with international norms of behaviour; and
  

• Is integrated throughout the organisation and practised in its relationships.”
  

Accordingly, our aim is to integrate strategic approaches with social needs.

In 2009, in recognition of the fact that in our community there are individuals and organisations that work for the public good and cannot afford the professional services of a lawyer, we established our ‘Make a Difference’ program. The program makes a positive contribution to our community by providing pro bono legal and other assistance from within Meridian Lawyers. It actively demonstrates the firm’s commitment to “making a difference” and fulfils its obligations to the Victorian Government as a member of the Legal Panel for providing legal services.