John Mann

About John Mann

John Mann is Of Counsel at K&L Gates in Melbourne, with more than 25 years' experience in transactional law. His work spans negotiated and unregulated mergers and acquisitions, private equity transactions, due diligence, joint ventures, and corporate structuring and restructuring. He also provides general corporate and commercial legal advice and is often quoted in the Australian press on M&A and business-law topics.

Doyle’s Guide lists John Mann as Recommended among Victoria’s business and commercial lawyers in 2026, and Recommended in its Corporate Lawyers, Victoria list.

K&L Gates now lists John Mann as Of Counsel rather than partner.

Doyle’s Guide rankings

John Mann’s most recent listings. Every edition we could verify is set out in the ranking history below.

• Business & Commercial Lawyers, VictoriaRecommendedDoyle’s 2026 · K&L GatesSource →
• Corporate Lawyers, VictoriaRecommendedDoyle’s 2026 · K&L GatesSource →

Doyle’s ranking history

Every Doyle’s listing we could verify for John Mann. Each list page was opened individually on doylesguide.com, one edition at a time, on 17 September 2026; no run of years has been inferred from a single page.

• Business & Commercial Lawyers, VictoriaRecommendedRecommended 2026 · Preeminent 2022–2025 · Leading 2021Source →
• Corporate Lawyers, VictoriaRecommendedRecommended 2019–2020, 2024–2026 · Leading 2021–2023Source →
• Corporate & Commercial Lawyers (SME & Mid-Market Matters), VictoriaLeadingLeading 2018Source →
• Corporate/M&A Lawyers (High-Value Matters), VictoriaRecommendedRecommended 2017–2018Source →
• Corporate/M&A Lawyers (Smaller & Mid-Market Matters), VictoriaLeadingLeading 2017Source →
• M&A Lawyers, MelbourneRecommendedRecommended 2016Source →
• Corporate Lawyers, MelbourneLeadingLeading 2015Source →
• Corporate Lawyers, AustraliaRecommendedRecommended 2015Source →

Years are the edition years Doyle’s publishes. Doyle’s listings over the years name Clarendon Lawyers and K&L Gates. We searched Doyle’s Victorian and national lawyer lists for commercial, corporate, property, leasing, insolvency, technology, employment, construction and estates work from 2015 to 2026.

What John Mann handles

As listed by K&L Gates:

• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Private Equity Transactions

Sectors. Financial Services; Life Sciences; Private Equity; Technology.

Career and background

• Began his legal career at Middletons in 1988, becoming a partner there in 1995. (source)
• Left the K&L Gates partnership for a period at Clarendon Lawyers before rejoining K&L Gates as a partner in its Melbourne office, announced 1 December 2016. (source)
• Now Of Counsel at K&L Gates, Melbourne, after more than 25 years with the firm and its predecessor firms. (source)
• LL.B., University of Melbourne, 1989. (source)
• B.Com, University of Melbourne, 1989. (source)
• Graduate Diploma (Corporations and Securities Law), University of Melbourne, 2001. (source)
• Admitted, Federal Court of Australia. (source)
• Admitted, Supreme Court of Victoria. (source)
• Member, Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC). (source)
• Member, International Bar Association. (source)
• Member, Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD). (source)
• Member, Australian Investment Council (AIC). (source)
• Former board member and chair of the audit and risk committee, Lasallian Foundation (9 years). (source)
• Former member, Social Enterprises Working Committee, Brotherhood of St Laurence (5 years). (source)
• Former pro bono client liaison partner, Homeground Services (10 years). (source)

Other recognition

Listings in other directories, as published by the source shown. We have not independently verified these.

• The Legal 500 Asia Pacific — Recommended Lawyer, Corporate and M&A, Australia, 2019 and 2025. (source)
• The Best Lawyers in Australia — Corporate/Governance Practice, 2014-2027. (source)
• The Best Lawyers in Australia — Corporate Law, 2025-2027. (source)
• The Best Lawyers in Australia — Mergers and Acquisitions Law, 2014-2027. (source)
• The Best Lawyers in Australia — Private Equity Law, 2016-2027. (source)
• IFLR1000 — notable practitioner for private equity and M&A in Australia, 2022. (source)

Register details

John Mann is listed on the Victorian register of lawyers kept by the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner. The entry is reproduced below as it appeared on 17 September 2026 (the address field is omitted).

• Name on the registerJohn Mann
• Practising certificate typePrincipal with Trust
• Practising atK&L Gates
• Areas of practiceBusiness/Corporate Law, Charity/Not-For-Profit, Commercial Law, Competition/Consumer Law, Information technology/Telecommunications, IT/Cybersecurity
• Accredited specialisationsNot applicable
• LanguagesNot applicable

How to engage John Mann

Contact K&L Gates directly through the firm’s profile page. If you are not sure what kind of lawyer your matter needs, our matching service can point you to the right starting place.

Frequently asked questions

Who is John Mann?

John Mann is Of Counsel at K&L Gates in Melbourne, working in mergers and acquisitions and private equity transactions.

Is John Mann ranked by Doyle’s Guide?

Doyle’s Guide lists John Mann as Recommended among Victoria’s business and commercial lawyers in 2026, and Recommended in its Corporate Lawyers, Victoria list. Each edition is linked in the ranking history on this page.

What does John Mann specialise in?

According to K&L Gates: Mergers and Acquisitions; Private Equity Transactions.

How do I contact John Mann?

Through K&L Gates. This profile is editorial; John Mann has not claimed it and has no commercial relationship with Lawyer Reviews.