About McPhee Kelshaw – Blue Mountains Lawyers

From its humble beginning as a one lawyer firm in 1976 McPhee Kelshaw has grown to employ seven solicitors and over 20 support staff.

While priding itself on serving the local Blue Mountains community McPhee Kelshaw also has a diverse range of clients throughout the greater Sydney metropolitan area.  These clients have been drawn to the firm by its expertise and service.  McPhee Kelshaw has over 40 years  experience and expertise in a broad range of law from family law to local government to planning law to advising not for profit organisations.

McPhee Kelshaw History

Since 1976 McPhee Kelshaw has sought to provide our clients with legal expertise and advice of the highest quality in a way which can be easily understood.

Paul McPhee grew up in the Blue Mountains and attended Katoomba High School. From there he went to the University of Sydney where he studied law, graduating in 1974. In 1974 he commenced practice in Sydney before striking out on his own in 1975 from the front room of his parent’s house in Springwood. The growing practice soon moved to its own premises in Macquarie Road, Springwood.

In 1976 Paul invited his friend and fellow lawyer Alan Kelshaw to join the firm and it became known as McPhee Kelshaw. In the 1980s Alan and Paul commissioned Alan’s father to construct the Old Bakery Arcade which has been the home of McPhee Kelshaw since. Gradually, as the firm has grown, it has occupied more of the Old Bakery Arcade.

Paul and Alan were joined by David Maddox who would later leave the firm to become a barrister at Parramatta.

In 1981 Trevor Cork left the major Sydney firm of Blake Dawson to replace David Maddox as a partner in McPhee Kelshaw bringing with him a wealth of experience advising some of Australia’s largest companies.

In 1985 Alan Kelshaw left the firm to undertake theological studies at Regent College Vancouver and returned again after completing his studies.

In 1985 David Dunkley, a former employed solicitor of the firm, returned to the firm as a partner after a period of extended travel in Europe which included a period of study at Labri in Switzerland.

In 2004 Alan Kelshaw stepped down as a partner to increase his involvement in his local church and continued as a consultant for a short time before going to work full time as a Baptist Pastor. In 2004 Alan retired as a partner Steven Nicholson became a partner in the firm.

In 2008 David Dunkley was appointed a Federal Magistrate in the Federal Magistrates Court and is now a Federal Circuit Court Judge in the Federal Circuit Court. Ann Schrale, who had started with our firm in 1993, returned in 2008 to replace David.