Media Arts Lawyers Sets Launch for Brisbane Office (EXCLUSIVE)

David Vodicka’s Media Arts Lawyers is establishing a presence later this month in Brisbane, TMN can confirm.

The boutique entertainment law firm will open in the week of May 23 in Fortitude Valley, the city’s entertainment precinct and the beating heart of Bigsound, which returns this September with a physical event.

Recently appointed partner Marcus Walkom will oversee the new office at 35/269 Wickham Street, MAL’s fourth after Sydney, Auckland and its headquarters in Melbourne.

With the ten-year countdown ticking for the 2032 Olympic Games, and, as the live music community roars back to life after two barren years, Brisbane was “an obvious next choice” for the business to establish a physical presence, and a “perfect location” to service Queensland and Northern NSW more widely, reads a statement on the expansion north.

Brisbane has “until more recently been overshadowed by its eastern seaboard counterparts Sydney and Melbourne,” notes Walkom in a statement to TMN.

“However, the growing recognition of the city – together with Queensland more broadly and Northern NSW – as a creative and cultural hub made sense for the firm as we continue our growth as the largest boutique entertainment law firm in Australia and New Zealand.”

With the elevation of Walkom, Yasmin Naghavi (Melbourne) and Rob Glass (Sydney) in 2021, reflecting the “recent significant growth of the firm,” a statement read at the time, the law firm now boasts six partners and fourteen lawyers.

“I’m incredibly excited by the opportunity of opening the Brisbane office and thankful for the support and guidance of the other partners David, Stephen, Julian, Yasmin and Rob,” adds Walkom.

When the Queensland music business met with the state’s leaders in March for the inaugural Parliamentary Friends of the Music Industry function, guests heard that, in a typical pre-Covid year, the sunshine state’s live music industry generates $175 million.

Also, according to QMusic, the state’s wider music industry generates some $330 million in revenue.

“I look forward to servicing the vibrant music, entertainment and creative industries throughout Queensland and Northern NSW as the region continues its evolution into a globally recognised home of the arts,” enthuses Walkom.

Founded by Vodicka, MAL has represented the likes of Courtney Barnett, Flume, Gotye, Tame Impala, Kylie Minogue, Daniel Johns, AIR, IMNZ, MMF New Zealand, and many others across its 20-year-plus history.