Hon­our­ing our founder, our peo­ple, and our clients

This year, Swaab proud­ly marks 45 years since our found­ing by the late Fredrick (Fred) Swaab an entre­pre­neur, men­tor, and leader remem­bered for his inno­va­tion and gen­eros­i­ty of spir­it. Fred estab­lished Swaab in 1981, led the firm for decades, and set a stan­dard of care for peo­ple and clients that con­tin­ues to define us today.

Man­ag­ing Part­ner, Mary Digiglio, said: ​“Fred believed the firm’s part­ners were cus­to­di­ans, respon­si­ble for build­ing a firm that would serve future gen­er­a­tions of lawyers and clients. That con­vic­tion con­tin­ues to guide our lead­er­ship today. Fred’s goal was not mere­ly the pur­suit of com­mer­cial suc­cess; it was also to sup­port those in need of care­ful guid­ance through legal quag­mires and con­flicts. He built our firm on the expec­ta­tion that our peo­ple deliv­ered hon­est, con­sid­ered, and pro­fes­sion­al advice backed by deep skill, exper­tise, and excel­lent service.

“Our aim has always been to cre­ate a work­place that is not only enjoyed, but one that inspires great work, per­son­al growth, and pro­fes­sion­al devel­op­ment. Togeth­er, these val­ues enhance our abil­i­ty to deliv­er unri­valled val­ue for mon­ey and excep­tion­al ser­vice, hall­marked by our Gen­eros­i­ty of Spir­it and com­mit­ment to liv­ing the Swaab Brand of Ser­vice. This means a down‑to‑earth approach ground­ed in deep legal exper­tise and a gen­uine under­stand­ing of our clients’ needs, enabling us to offer bespoke advice and prac­ti­cal outcomes.

As I reflect on this mile­stone, I’m remind­ed that our 45‑year jour­ney belongs just as much to our clients and friends as it does to us. Your trust, your feed­back, and your advo­ca­cy have shaped who we are as a firm. You have helped define Swaab’s jour­ney and encour­aged us to keep rais­ing the bar.”

From Fred’s vision in 1981 to today’s multi‑award‑winning full‑service firm, we are proud of how far we’ve come and even more excit­ed for what lies ahead. With our peo­ple, clients, and Swaab Brand of Ser­vice at the cen­tre of every­thing we do, the future looks bright.

If you would like to repub­lish this arti­cle, it is gen­er­al­ly approved, but pri­or to doing so please con­tact the Mar­ket­ing team at marketing@​swaab.​com.​au. This arti­cle is not legal advice and the views and com­ments are of a gen­er­al nature only. This arti­cle is not to be relied upon in sub­sti­tu­tion for detailed legal advice.

Publications

Land­lords Beware: New Tobac­co Laws Could Mean Heavy Fines and Even Gaol Time

How Do New Tobac­co Laws Affect Land­lords in NSW?This year the NSW State Gov­ern­ment is crack­ing down on the sale of…

When is entry into a lot with­out the lot own­er’s con­sent per­mit­ted to car­ry out repair work to com­mon prop­er­ty? When there is an emergency

When is entry into a lot with­out the lot own­er’s con­sent per­mit­ted to car­ry out repair work to com­mon prop­er­ty? When…

A Short Sto­ry about Bullying

In the recent Fair Work Com­mis­sion deci­sion of Appli­ca­tion by Gary Whitham [2026] FWC 3322, Deputy Pres­i­dent Col­man gave short…

In the News

Michael Byrnes appeared on McK­night Tonight with Robert McK­night on 6 Octo­ber 2026 to dis­cuss the lat­est devel­op­ments in the Jack­ie ​‘O’ Hen­der­son v ARN case (from 5:40 to 20:00)

What hap­pened to the Jack­ie O and ARN court case, and why did the Fed­er­al Court hear­ing col­lapse in OctoberMichael Byrnes appeared…

Michael Byrnes is quot­ed in the arti­cle, “ ​‘You can’t force new con­tracts on employ­ees’ ”, pub­lished in TV Black­box on 4 Octo­ber 2026

Can an employ­er force employ­ees to sign a new employ­ment con­tract if they don’t agree to the changes?Michael Byrnes is quot­ed in…

Michael Byrnes is quot­ed in the arti­cle, ​“Jack­ie Hen­der­son and ARN’s court show­down post­poned”, pub­lished in Mum­brel­la on 2 Octo­ber 2026

Why was Jack­ie Henderson’s Fed­er­al Court tri­al against ARN Media post­poned, and what issues delayed the Octo­ber 2026 hearing?Michael Byrnes is…

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