Law was an easy career choice for Tony Hickey. In his family it was either that or medicine and he couldn’t stand the sight of blood.
As it turned out, having limited options proved fortuitous for the Gold Coast property lawyer who now sits in his own high-rise office and at the right hand of casino magnates and billionaire developers.
Having grown up in the Gold Coast suburb of Southport, Mr Hickey went on to study at the University of Queensland.
A year out from being admitted, he was given a part-time job as a law clerk for prominent property and commercial lawyer Geoffrey Rapp.
“I was absolutely terrified,” Mr Hickey told The Australian
“There I was in my shorts and long socks thinking the thing that law clerks do is make coffee and I have no idea how to make coffee, I don’t even drink it.”
But what the law student lacked in domestic skills, he made up for with expert property knowledge and, just two years after graduating, he became partner in the firm alongside his mentor.
Entering the market at the tail end of the Japanese investors boom, Mr Hickey soon learned he had a talent for helping overseas investors who had made “terrible choices” to get back on track.
After spending 15 years running one of southeast Queensland’s leading property law practices with Mr Rapp, Mr Hickey decided to change direction and run his own firm.
A client base, largely made up of Chinese investors, includes Tony Fung’s Aquis and a host of other listed companies including Mantra and the Sunland Group.
The professional and personal relationship he has forged with one of Hong Kong’s richest and most respected men, Stanley Ho, has been a highlight of Mr Hickey’s career.
He is particularly proud of the award-winning 34-level Wave apartment tower at Broadbeach, which he was entrusted to complete on behalf of the billionaire businessman.
Now a grandfather, Mr Hickey is determined to play a part in ensuring the Gold Coast continues to be a place where the next generation of his family will prosper.
Currently representing Forise Holdings, the developer of a $1 billion 88-level building at the old Illuka Tower site in Surfers Paradise, Mr Hickey believes foreign, sustainable investment, remains the key to job creation and a healthy Gold Coast economy.
“Some people might disagree but I believe if you want a country town, you are in the wrong place … that’s never what the Gold Coast was destined to be,” Mr Hickey said
“We are in the midst of a wonderful opportunity to take advantage of a real and genuine interest from investors who want to take their money out of China and spend it in Australia.
“There are investors who genuinely believe the Gold Coast could be the tourism capital of the world.
“It doesn’t mean we just give them (overseas investors) everything they want but we need to be prepared for progress and when a Chinese investor comes along and wants to spend $1 billion on a project, we can’t just say ‘well, do we really want that?’
“I never want to go back to a situation like the one we had during the GFC where I had staff coming in and wondering if they were going to have a job the next week. The economics haven’t changed, it’s not a matter of ‘do we want it?’, it’s a matter of ‘we need it’.”
Original Published On: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/