Joe Windmeyer

Joe is an experienced partner and previous Russell McVeagh board member, specialising in corporate and commercial law. Joe has a reputation for his expertise in mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and securities work. He provides clients with clear advice on listed and unlisted company takeovers, assets and share acquisitions and disposals, and offers of securities, helping them to achieve commercial outcomes. He has a number of clients in the energy field, where his 30 years of experience delivers unparalleled results for clients.

Joe enables clients to make successful commercial deals, and has recently advised Allnex on its acquisition of Nuplex Industries by way of a scheme of arrangement, and Trustpower on its successful demerger into two separate NZX and ASX listed companies.

Joe's experience includes advising:

• Trustpower Limited on its liquidation and demerger into two separate NZX and ASX listed companies so as to separate its hydro generation and retail base from its windfarm assets.
• Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited on its establishment of ‘Trading Among Farmers’, including establishing a new private share market operated by NZX Limited, an initial public offering by the Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund and its listing on both the NZSX and the ASX.
• Amphenol Corporation on its acquisition of Phitek by way of amalgamation.
• Genesis Energy on its securities offering and listing on the NZX pursuant to the Government MOM process.
• Turners & Growers Limited on the takeover by BayWa AG.

LLB (Hons), BCom, University of Auckland.

Before joining Russell McVeagh in 2004, Joe had been a partner at another large New Zealand law firm for 12 years.

He was admitted to practise law in New Zealand in 1985.

Joe is recognised as a leading Corporate and M&A lawyer by the Legal 500 2022 Guide, as well as the Chambers and Partners' Asia-Pacific 2023 Guide and Global 2021 Guide. He has been named 'Lawyer of the Year' for Corporate Governance and Compliance Practice in the 2024 Best Lawyers® New Zealand Guide and is recognised in the fields of Capital Markets Law, Corporate Law, M&A Law, Private Equity Law, Energy Law, Corporate Governance and Compliance Practice. Our Corporate Advisory team was named New Zealand's top deal firm at the 2019 New Zealand Law Awards, and Joe co-led the team that won 'Consumer, Media and Tech Deal of the Year' at the awards. 

Joe was named a finalist in the 'NZ Dealmaker of the Year' category in the 2022 Australasian Law Awards.

He is described as 'the one for difficult questions for leading corporates' in the Legal 500 Guide.