Robert Ishak, one of the founding directors of Sydney and Melbourne-based law firm William Roberts Lawyers, describes his firm as being somewhat akin to a teenager.
This is not because it’s rebellious or socially awkward, but because it has grown at an astonishing rate since it first opened its doors on 1 July 2005.
A commercial litigation lawyer, Ishak founded the firm with his brother’s best mate and fellow University of Western Sydney (UWS) alumni Bill Petrovski. And, interestingly, the pair chose to use their first names instead of adopting the usual surname combination.
“At first it was going to be Robert Williams,” says Ishak, “but we thought it would be too close a nexus to Robbie Williams, the singer. And, well, William Roberts just sounded a whole lot better than Ishak Petrovski.”
Thus William Roberts was born, and the founders held the fort in their CBD-based office until Ishak’s apparent inability to fold letters correctly forced them to hire a receptionist. She arrived in September 2005, a graduate soon followed (who is now an associate with the firm), the firm now boasts more than 30 lawyers in two capital cities, and Ishak fully expects the growth to continue. Read more
