South East Melbourne
Commercial lawyers advise businesses on contracts, company structures, buying and selling businesses, intellectual property, tax, debt and insolvency.
118 firms
Oakleigh, VIC · South East Melbourne
Campbell & Shaw provides legal services in Oakleigh, VIC. Listed practice areas include Wills & Estates, Business & Commercial Law and Probate & Estate Administration.
Moorabbin, VIC · South East Melbourne
Gigliotti Lawyers Moorabbin provides legal services in Moorabbin, VIC. Listed practice areas include Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Insolvency & Restructuring and Wills & Estates.
Dandenong, VIC · South East Melbourne
Law Partners Personal Injury Lawyers provides legal services in Dandenong, VIC. Listed practice areas include Personal Injury, Partner & Family Visas and Motor Vehicle Accidents / CTP.
Port Melbourne, VIC · South East Melbourne
Behan Legal provides legal services in Port Melbourne, VIC. Listed practice areas include Business & Commercial Law, Property & Conveyancing and Wills & Estates.
Brighton, VIC · South East Melbourne
Bancroft Lawyers provides legal services in Brighton, VIC. Listed practice areas include Business & Commercial Law, Property & Conveyancing and Family Law.
Frankston, VIC · South East Melbourne
LEAD Conveyancing Dandenong provides conveyancing services in Frankston, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing and Business & Commercial Law.
St Kilda, VIC · South East Melbourne
A Conveyancing Lawyer provides legal services in St Kilda, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing and Business & Commercial Law.
Dandenong, VIC · South East Melbourne
Mendis & Gibson Lawyers provides legal services in Dandenong, VIC. Listed practice areas include NDIS & Disability Law, Business & Commercial Law and Property & Conveyancing.
Frankston, VIC · South East Melbourne
Guymer Lawyers provides legal services in Frankston, VIC. Listed practice areas include Building & Construction, Business & Commercial Law and Commercial Litigation.
Bentleigh, VIC · South East Melbourne
ADAM KERNAHAN provides legal services in Bentleigh, VIC. Listed practice areas include Business & Commercial Law, Property & Conveyancing and Litigation & Dispute Resolution.
Cranbourne West, VIC · South East Melbourne
Kohinoor Legal provides legal services in Cranbourne West, VIC. Listed practice areas include Immigration & Visas, Property & Conveyancing and Business & Commercial Law.
Dandenong, VIC · South East Melbourne
Vera Lawyers provides legal services in Dandenong, VIC. Listed practice areas include Business & Commercial Law, Property & Conveyancing and Immigration & Visas.
Dandenong, VIC · South East Melbourne
Dlegal Barristers & Solicitors provides legal services in Dandenong, VIC. Listed practice areas include Wills & Estates, Immigration & Visas and Family Law.
Hughesdale, VIC · South East Melbourne
Asher Freeman Lawyers provides legal services in Hughesdale, VIC. Listed practice areas include Business & Commercial Law, Property & Conveyancing and Litigation & Dispute Resolution.
Cranbourne, VIC · South East Melbourne
Sandercock & Cowie provides legal services in Cranbourne, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing and Intellectual Property & Trade Marks.
Frankston, VIC · South East Melbourne
TechComm Legal provides legal services in Frankston, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Intellectual Property & Trade Marks and Business & Commercial Law.
Bentleigh, VIC · South East Melbourne
Vectigal Legal provides legal services in Bentleigh, VIC. Listed practice areas include Business & Commercial Law, Property & Conveyancing and Wills & Estates.
Thomastown, VIC · South East Melbourne
Warna Legal provides legal services in Thomastown, VIC. Listed practice areas include Notary Public & JP Services, Business & Commercial Law and Immigration & Visas.
Elwood, VIC · South East Melbourne
Make It Yours Conveyancing provides legal services in Elwood, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Business & Commercial Law and Partner & Family Visas.
Port Melbourne, VIC · South East Melbourne
Citigate Conveyancing Services provides conveyancing services in Port Melbourne, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Building & Construction and Business & Commercial Law.
Cheltenham, VIC · South East Melbourne
Strongmark Legal provides legal services in Cheltenham, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Business & Commercial Law and Wills & Estates.
Cheltenham, VIC · South East Melbourne
BE Conveyancing + Law Collective provides legal services in Cheltenham, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Wills & Estates and Business & Commercial Law.
Bentleigh, VIC · South East Melbourne
Pugh Legal provides legal services in Bentleigh, VIC. Listed practice areas include Wills & Estates, Property & Conveyancing and Notary Public & JP Services.
Springvale, VIC · South East Melbourne
Phoenix Conveyancing Victoria provides conveyancing services in Springvale, VIC. Listed practice areas include Property & Conveyancing, Business & Commercial Law and Partner & Family Visas.
Small and medium businesses usually need a lawyer at the moments that carry real risk: setting up the structure, signing a lease or major contract, raising money, taking on a partner, buying or selling the business, or dealing with a dispute or unpaid debt. A commercial lawyer who understands your industry can save money by fixing problems in the documents before they become disputes. Larger firms offer specialist teams in areas such as competition law, privacy and banking, while many regional firms cover the everyday needs of local businesses and farms.
Legal issues are among the most common reasons small businesses fail. Prevention costs far less than disputes.
Businesses operate under federal company, tax and consumer law plus state laws on leasing, licensing and property.
Understand the next step
Start with the commercial objective: entering a contract, changing ownership, raising finance, resolving a dispute or managing risk. Identify the legal entity and who may give instructions. A company, its directors and its shareholders do not necessarily have the same interests.
Dandenong, Frankston, Cranbourne and Moorabbin span a broad search area. A firm’s suburb, meeting options and experience with your matter are more informative than the South East Melbourne label alone.
For business & commercial, ask which parts of the work the firm handles itself and whether it has relevant VIC experience. Let the lawyer know if a property, employer, other party or existing proceeding is outside South East Melbourne. Your home address alone does not determine the applicable process.
Explain the transaction, amount involved, parties and desired result. Provide the current agreement and relevant entity or trust details.
Ask which risks need legal, accounting, tax or technical advice. Identify essential terms and those you are willing to negotiate.
Agree who negotiates, approves documents and tracks continuing obligations. Clarify whether post-completion advice is included.
Request a defined scope or staged budget with assumptions about document review and negotiation rounds. Personal guarantees, tax and related disputes may need separate work.
Ask for a written scope identifying the work you are authorising, the person responsible and when costs will be reviewed. If you only want advice on one step, say so before the firm begins wider work.
Highlight signing dates, finance conditions and demands. Raise an inability to meet debts immediately so appropriate advice can be identified before further commitments.
Directory guidance updated 19 September 2026. General information to help you prepare for a conversation with a professional; not advice about your individual matter. Check current requirements with the relevant authority.
Good to know
You can register a company yourself. A lawyer is useful for the shareholders agreement, the right structure for tax and asset protection, and making sure your contracts and terms protect you.
Yes. Leases often run for years and can include costly obligations such as make-good, outgoings and personal guarantees. Some states also have retail leasing laws that affect your rights.
A lawyer can send a letter of demand, and if that fails, start recovery proceedings. For companies, a statutory demand can be an effective option in the right circumstances.