Mark McKillop

Mark practices in commercial matters, particularly in insolvency, banking, corporations and property litigation.  Mark is a recognised expert in PPSA law, having acted in leading decisions in the area and widely lectured and written on the subject.  As a barrister, he takes a direct and clear approach in discussing matters with clients and in presenting cases in Court. 

Mark has 30 years’ experience in commercial law as Counsel and as a solicitor in private practice and inhouse. 

Mark is a nationally accredited mediator with experience as mediator across a range of commercial, insolvency and family law matters.

Mark has appeared in trials and appeals in the Supreme Court and Federal Courts in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland in the following areas:

PPSA and Security matters

• PPSA matters:
  • Extensions of time to register
  • Priority disputes
  • Advice regarding existence and priority of security interests
  • Drafting advice
  • Advice to liquidators and VAs regarding vesting disputes
• Priority disputes in relation to land
• Caveat advice, applications to remove
• Mortgage enforcement and recovery
• Personal Guarantees
• Investigation and litigation of managed investment schemes

Insolvency matters

• Practitioner Directions, extensions of time
• DOCA and restructuring advice
• Cross Border Recognition
• Public Examinations
• Pooling and Shelf order
• Setting aside or termination of deeds of company arrangement
• Preferences, uncommercial transactions and insolvent trading
• Receivership appointments, advice, court appointments
• Remuneration approval
• Corporate winding up, setting aside of statutory demands
• Bankruptcy matters including sequestration,  s120 and s121 recoveries, annulments

General Commercial Disputes

• Fiduciary duty and breach of trust
• Crypto investigation and recovery
• Major fraud investigation and recovery
• Agribusiness disputes
• Oppression, partnership and shareholder disputes
• Contract disputes and drafting advice
• Freezing and search orders in a range of contexts
• Executive Employee restraint and recovery

Family Law

• Financial aspects of Family Law matters
• Security advice regarding asset pool
• Bankruptcy claims by spouse’s trustee

Mark has an extensive advisory practice with respect to PPSA law and general securities law.

Mark’s practice has been consistently ranked Doyles Guide, including in Doyle’s Guide Leading Insolvency & Restructuring Junior Counsel – Victoria, 2024.

Before coming to the bar, Mark was a Senior Associate at Minter Ellison in its commercial disputes group practising principally in insolvency, banking and commercial matters. Whilst at Minter Ellison, as a secondee, he managed the NSW and ACT legal group of the National Australia Bank in 2005, advising the Bank’s recoveries and workouts team. In 2007 he was seconded on a part time basis to a major retirement village provider, resolving its exposure to a series of insolvent managed investment schemes.

He has been published and has presented extensively and been published in his areas of practice.  Some recent examples include:

• Co-authored Commbar’s comments on the Commonwealth’s PPSA review (Whittaker report)
• Lexis Nexis, “Freezing and Search Order Orders”, Federal Civil Litigation Precedents (2024)
• “A Questionable Practice – PPSA” ARITA Journal March 2016, 32 
• “Caveats – A Refresher” – Foleys List Commercial CPD March 2018 with Philip Barton
• Seminars on Cross Border Insolvency Recognition,  PPSA Basic principles, Pooling – Two hurdles to the Foleys List Commercial C