Our Services
We offer independent analysis, research, assessments, strategy, and policy at the intersections of law, geopolitics, and security. We focus on sovereign resilience and governance in Australia and the near regions. However, our broad skills, knowledge, and experience means that we can apply our core services to many other topics and in different ways. We are problem-solvers.
We are a law firm with a practice in Australian public and international law. We focus on defence, national security, sovereignty, and the laws of war. We also have experience in Pacific law. We offer advisings, embedded support, written representations, and submissions to government and parliamentary inquiries. Legal services are provided on a specifically requested basis.
We offer services to government in the intellectual, informational, and legal warfare domains. We use Kidlin’s Handle to define, construct, and test problem statements. We use the Norfolk Assessment Tool to construct and conduct multidimensional analysis of problem statements. We also conceptually develop tools and techniques to assist with specialised analysis and research.
We provide our clients with different approaches, thinking, and perspectives. Our advisory skills come from strong intellectual foundations, enquiring minds, and broad knowledge and experience. We work to our five core values of perspective, independence, confidentiality, integrity, and purpose. And we adhere to the highest standards of probative evidence, fact-based inquiry, and rigorous logic.
Our Approach
We use methods, processes, and techniques that we consider are best suited to helping our clients make informed decisions to secure their interests. This might involve using an established methodology in a different way, or applying one of our in-house tools and techniques, to reveal different approaches, thinking, or perspectives. We will create analytic tools as needed.
What is distinctive about our approach is how we draw on archival records and other original materials, apply historical and philosophical perspectives, and use qualitative methods such as field observations. We examine and evaluate from first-principles to help understand how situations were created and developed, and their implications for our clients. We contextualise problems differently.
We explain our approach and values in early discussions with clients. This is part of our initial assessment and collaboration with them on formulating the problem statement, agreed scope, and key deliverables. Milestones and other terms will be negotiated at the time. For legal services, this will include a disclosure notice and costs agreement (if required) with clients.
Whatever our approach, we adhere to the highest standards of probative evidence, fact-based inquiry, and rigorous logic in our work. Our reports are concise, direct, and focussed on practical outcomes. Where possible, we will publish an article (on our website or elsewhere) at no expense to our clients on an aspect of our work. We believe in contributing to the ‘stock of useful knowledge’.
We voluntarily comply with the Australian Code for Responsible Conduct of Research (2018) in respect of our research work. Our research is conducted responsibility, ethically, and with integrity. And we conduct our research in compliance with Australian laws and ethical standards. We will discuss what this means in our early discussions with clients and then as the need arises.