Who we are
D2 Legal in Australia is a registered legal practice, able to provide seamless legal service and commercial expertise in a number of specialist banking and finance areas. With senior lawyers from top-tier institutions and law firms, we have a competitive service and strong client relationships. We are the legal services arm of global consulting firm D2 Legal Technology which is headquartered in London.
What we do
We provide legal advice under Australian and English law and are trusted advisers to key stakeholders across Australia’s financial services industry, including government entities, global investment banks, asset managers, corporates, superannuation funds, industry associations, and market infrastructure providers. Our experienced legal team has expertise on the full range of complex transactions, including:
- Acting for professional trustees on various financing arrangements
- Derivatives transaction review and advisory (including negotiation of ISDA and CSAs) plus regulatory and netting advice
- Initial margin and collateral structures as well as the surrounding regulations
- Trade reporting implementation advice, breach analysis and general queries
- Deal repaperings and amendments arising from regulatory or market developments
- Stock lending and repo documentation services including GMRA and GMSLA
- Debt capital markets in the domestic and international markets
- Loan repackaging transaction documentation
- Bilateral and syndicated loans including hedging aspects, amendments and acting for trustees
- Project Finance general legal and advisory work
- Securitisation transaction documentation including restructurings and new issuances
Management Team
Rachel Scanlon, Managing Director
Rachel is Managing Director and Head of APAC. She is an internationally experienced financial services lawyer specializing in data, financial services regulation and derivatives. Prior to joining D2 in 2019, her roles included Global Head of Documentation for Goldman Sachs, Head of Derivatives at Challenger, and General Counsel at ASX 100 Australian fund manager Magellan Financial Group.
Akber Datoo, Founder and CEO
Akber is a leading expert at the intersection of legal, regulatory, and technology transformation in financial services. As founder and global CEO of D2 Legal Technology based in London, he advises top-tier banks, asset managers, and trade associations on capital markets regulation, legal agreement digitisation, and the strategic adoption of AI and digital assets frameworks. A qualified lawyer and former technologist at UBS, Akber brings deep cross-disciplinary expertise to complex industry challenges. He co-chairs the Technology and Law Committee of the Law Society of England & Wales and is a published authority on legal data and smart contracts.