When Herbert Smith Freehills first joined CCIWA, there were no high-rise buildings on St Georges Terrace and horse and carts were still a popular mode of transport.

Herbert Smith Freehills Perth Managing Partner Elizabeth Macknay.

The firm became a member in 1921 under its initial iteration of Parker & Parker, which was launched by the first WA-born and bred lawyer Stephen Henry Parker in 1868.

Parker & Parker merged with Freehill Hollingdale & Page in 1997 – the biggest merger of law firms in WA’s history. The firm formally became part of Australian Freehills in 2000, and then the global partnership Herbert Smith Freehills in 2012.

Herbert Smith Freehills Perth Managing Partner Elizabeth Macknay says the firm’s role as a CCIWA Member has changed significantly during the last 100 years.

“In the early days, we relied on CCIWA for advisory interactions and educational interactions,” she says.

“That then moved ... in the 70s and 80s to us having more of … an advisory role; we brought the benefit of having connections on the eastern seaboard.”

In the 1970s and 1980s, the firm helped facilitate discussions between CCIWA and government through its connections in the Eastern States.

“And now I think the interactions between us are very much a sort of partnership," Macknay adds.

"We see CCIWA having a really important voice in Western Australia and the Western Australian business community, which ... is something that's really important to us.”

The firm boasts 26 offices and some 5000 employees globally. Its Perth office has more than 200 employees, including about 160 lawyers, and operates as a full-service commercial law practice.

CCIWA has a proud 130-year history of helping WA businesses.

To join WA’s peak business organisation, contact us on 1300 422 492 or membership@cciwa.com.